The Wolf Pack
by Ol' Maddox
Summary: A college student from another, technologically advanced and militarized world is summoned to the country of Melromark. Armed with foreknowledge, intellect, and combat experience he tries to avoid the events he knows will come but a wrench is thrown into his plans. Now all he can do is improvise like Hell. (REWRITE COMPLETE)
1. New World, New Life

Chapter 1, New World, New Life

The weekend. A time to rest and recuperate from work or school. A time for everyone to relax in their own way. I chose to spend mine with some friends. We had all decided to go out and see a movie and since there were only four of us, it had been easy to get tickets.

The movie we were going to watch was playing at a theatre in the local mall and, having arrived a bit early, I had decided to drop by a game and tech store on my way over. It was one of my other favorite places to be. Good company, good service, and patience like no other. If I had to list how many bad ideas had come to being here, it would be a mile long.

The mall itself was rather large. Along the tall, wide walkways, stalls and stores decorated the sides and center. People were all around, seeing what they could buy or just wondering with friends of their own. Hovering in the air were holograms of new tech and on the market and where to buy them. Apart from being a bit more on the tall side, I didn't stand out much in the crowd.

My clothes are rather basic, being only a pair of khaki shorts, black shoes, and a Black, form-fitting hoodie with the top everything a bit below my shoulders being black. On my back and a khaki canvas backpack. It was a large, cylinder-shaped pack with one large strap going over my right shoulder and under the left, with a smaller one under the right. Under the large strap and behind the pack was heavy padding to make it very comfortable, even with a heavy load. I used it for a large variety of things from hunting, to carrying components, to just hauling around schoolwork, each one making more of a pack mule than anything. My short, hair and eyes were a soft brown and my body was paler.

I wasn't weak or out of shape, far from it. Mandatory service requirements made sure everyone was in shape to fight. I certainly wasn't winning any competitions though.

Walking in, I was greeted with an open front that quickly gave way to row upon row of technology. To my left, I could see some tables where many people were either gaming together, designing projects of their own, or studying for what one could only assume were major projects.

When I had first come here, I quickly learned that the store had a sort of community within itself full of gamers, geeks, and designers of all sorts, and had quickly joined. Walking in, I was waved over by someone everyone knew.

The Quartermaster. A nickname for the owner who worked at the store and enjoyed the company that it had brought in. He was an old friend of mine I have known since we were kids. It was only recently that we met back up as moving to different schools made us lose touch.

He greeted me with a nod and waved me over. He wore a grey jumpsuit with black trim on the shoulders. It gave a sort of sci-fi appeal to it that matched the shop perfectly. His skin and short hair were both rather dark with his eyes being dark brown.

When we had first met up, he explained that he had gotten his hands on some cheap 3D printers and CNC machines and, after some patchwork, got them working again. He opened the shop a little later. A laser cutter got added not too long ago.

"Hey John, how ya' been?"

"Good Zach, how about you?"

"Pretty good. It's project week so I've got people here just about every day using the printers and cutters."

"I guess that is kind of a payday for you huh. You call me over?"

"Yeah, found this when I was opening up this morning." Reaching under the desk he brought out something that made me raise my eyebrow. "I knew you liked that 'Rising of the Shield Hero' anime thing but I didn't know you liked it this much." He pulled out a small red book with some markings on it forming what could be construed as a magic circle of sorts. On it read 'The Four Cardinal Heros'.

"Uhh... pal, this ain't mine."

"Really? Got your name in it and everything." Surely enough I opened the book up and behind the hardcover was my name, 'John C. Carter.' I even had my phone number and address in it.

"Where'd you find it?" I asked flipping through the pages.

"Lying on one of the tables where you normally are. Figured I'd give it to you later today, knowing how often you show up here."

I nodded my head from side to side. "Fair point." I flipped the book back to the front and looked at Zachery. "I wonder how close it is to the one in the show." Feigning a cough to clear my throat, I adopted an overly posh and formal accent. "The Four Cardinal Hero-should I just drop the accent?"

He pursed his lips and nodded. It was pretty clear what he thought about it.

"Alright, Four Cardinal Hero's. Once upon a time, four heroes, the spear, bow, sword and shield, yadda yadda yadda, summoned to another world, some bitchy princess, yadda yadda-yeah this is pretty accurate."

He raised an eyebrow. "Bitchy princess?"

"Oh yeah," I said flipping to a page where a solid color depiction of the princess was given wearing a dress. Her hair was full and overall she was rather lean with her dress hugging her form tightly. "Basically there was some princess who accused like the one 'not ass-hole' hero of being a rapist and it pretty much went downhill for him from there. More stuff happens and he gets his name cleared but it's just a struggle-fest for the guy."

"Huh…" He said while processing what he had been told. "What happens to her?"

"She gets stripped of her title but past that not much. Was gonna get the death sentence but the same guy was feeling generous."

"Jeeze. Sounds rough for him."

"You have no idea." I continued flipping through the pages out of curiosity. I eventually came to the part where the writing stopped and was just a series of blank pages with no meaning. "Huh, even got that part right-" Before I could say anything, the floor below glowed a golden yellow.

"Shit!" I called out. My hand immediately shot for Zachary. He saw what was happening and tried to grab my hand as well, despite not understanding what was happening. He only managed to grab the book before the floor gave way and was sucked down, the book still firmly in his hands. I closed my eyes and braced.

My shoulder met cold stone with a hard thud and metal clang. Opening my eyes, I was in some sort of chamber. In front of me was a group of men, robed in dark purple and yellow trim garments. Standing up I could see three others, each one with a silvery weapon in hand with an accompanying gemstone. On my right arm was a silver shield with a green gem in the center. The back of the shield was angled like a square but the front curved down into more of a point. There was a black trim around the top edges and through the middle until it wrapped around the gem.

I quickly put two and two together but didn't believe what I was seeing.

"Where are we." I immediately picked out who said it. Looking back to my left I saw a short, blonde man with a green blazer and dark pants with a white shirt. In his hands was a silvery bow with a yellow gem. His hair was blonde and overall he was rather short and skinny.

'Itsuki… something.' All I really knew about him was he a justice crazed highschooler that was really bad at being the vigilante type.

Looking over I could see the other two were who they were before as well.

'Ren and Motoyasu… still no idea what their last names were… or was it their first names? Either way, it's all I'm callin' em'.' My mind was still processing everything but somewhere in the midst of it, I decided 'sure, let's go with it' and didn't bother trying to figure out the rest. Motoyasu was the first to speak.

"The hell do you mean? What's going on here?" It was Motoyasu who spoke next. He had a red jacket and khaki pants on. He was rather tall with long blonde hair and a chiseled face. Underneath his jacket was a white shirt.

"What we did to bring you here is complicated. But to surmise, we performed an ancient ritual to summon the four cardinal heroes. When it was complete, you four were the ones who appeared."

The other three stood there, taking in what they were told. "You see, our world is under siege by the waves of calamity. An event prophesied long ago. There is much more to be told about it but it is better said by our king. So will you save our world dear Hero's?"

Ren spoke up with the others. His clothes were rather casual as well. Black pants and a dark purple jacket were around his feature. His hair was long and dark, even darker than mine. Everyone from that I could see had pale skin like my own.

"Absolutely not."

"You pulled us away with our asking and expect us to just say yes?"

"Can you open a portal back to our homes? Answer that and then we'll talk.

'Seeing these guys be total assholes is one thing. Listening to it in person is a whole 'nother experience.' I thought.

The priest spoke up again. "Please. Any request you have is better said to our king. We can take you to him right away."

Motoyasu spoke up. "Fine by me. I don't really care who I talk to." The other heroes followed each one with their own opinion on the matter and none too pleasant to listen too. I tagged behind them silently. It wasn't long till we found ourselves in a stairwell. Looking out a window in the spire, I was given a view of the city.

It was stunning. The city reminded me of what old Italy would look like, with old stone buildings and clay tile roofs. Vendors and stalls decorated areas of the streets and signs hung with various symbols painted on them. I let out a whistle out the sight without thinking.

Itsuki gave his own comments at seeing the view of the city. "I guess we really are in another world."

"Got that right," I responded, I looked at him and held my hand out. "John Carter."

"Itsuki Kawasumi." He hesitated but shook it.

Looking up at the others who had stopped to wait for us. "What about y'all? What are your names?"

With a grin and no small amount of pride, "Motoyasu Kitamura."

And with a straight face and no emotion, "Ren Amaki."

I nodded. "Nice to meet y'all." I looked back at the sight. "Hell of a thing ain't it?"

"Definitely."

"From what I can tell it's a standard Mediterranean climate. Shouldn't be too far from the coastline if the humidity is anything to go by."

I nodded. "Feels like it. You travel a lot back in Japan?"

He narrowed his eyes at me and didn't say anything. 'Shit, I slipped. It was small but knowing him, he might be suspect of me now.' It was clear I wasn't Japanese by any means. The other three had characteristics, with Motoyasu being the closest thing to American other than myself. 'Play it off, make it funny, do something.'

"Good talk we should it again sometime." The others snorted and started on their way again. 'That was close though Ren might suspect something now. I'll probably tell him later so this isn't bad, but I can't let the priest know. He'll relay it to the King and Melty and make avoiding framing harder… How am I gonna do that anyway.'

We had finally made it to the king's chamber and I was met with the sight of a very large and decorated man. The room was large with high ceilings and pillars along the sides. Many people wearing extravagant clothing stood along the sides, obviously nobility and political leaders. The King wore white garments with a large, light purple cloak. Fur lined the top and sides and golden jewelry hung on his head and from his fingers.

He spoke with a deep, booming voice. "Greetings heroes. I am King Aultcray the XXXII. I would like to know your names?"

Jumping in, Motoyasu spoke first. "Well guess I'm first. Motoyasu Kitamura, Twentyone, college student."

"Ren Amaki, Sixteen, high schooler."

"Itsuki Kawasumi, seventeen years, high schooler."

My turn. "John Carter-"

"Motoyasu, Ren, and Itsuki." The King spoke.`

'Of course, he does that.'

Lifting my voice up. "Excuse me, sir." The king looked at me. "You skipped me."

I could see a flash of annoyance from the king but I didn't flinch under it. "Yes, my apologies."

'Welp, time to shut him up.' "John Carter, twenty years old, Militia rifleman, first class." The three other heroes looked at me with surprise and the king flinched a bit.

The Militia wasn't a go-to defense force. It was instead a civilian force for when police officers were unable to respond quickly enough or when extra manpower was required. Service requirements made sure everyone had to be ready for combat, should war be declared again, and the Militia was the easiest way. It was only after they'd seen combat that personnel began to climb up from third class.

The king grunted. Not letting him off so easily I stepped forward.

"Now if we are done with introductions, I would like to jump straight to business."

The king wanted to retaliate but opted not to. "Yes, now, if you may, could you check your status."

'Status… Oh yeah, forgot about that.' The others seemed confused and talked amongst themselves. I ignored the conversation going on as I had already heard it and gone to browse through my stats. Sure enough, in the bottom right-hand corner of my vision was a little icon. It was a green, semi-transparent circle with three dots in a line inside a pair of brackets.

I stared at it, looking through the information.

'John Carter, Shield Hero

Level 1

Small shield (Legendary Weapon)

Otherworld clothes, Otherworld backpack'

Just like I expected, all basic. At least I get to keep my backpack. I looked through other menus and saw nothing that surprised me. I had no magic, no special items apart from the shield, and no special abilities. Looking at my skill set, it appeared to reflect my current person.

My intelligence and agility were both fairly high to start. My strength and dexterity were only a bit higher than normal but not as much. Looking at more abstract things I could see I had naturally affinity for skills around forging and blacksmithing.

It made sense given my what I did back home but I was relieved nonetheless.

"Heroes," the king called out "the palace servants shall escort you to a room to spend the night. Please, do make yourself comfortable."

The king must've had the other status confirmed while I was looking through mine. If he did call on me, I must've not heard him. Though it's more likely he just ignored me entirely.

"When we arrived at our room, we found food already set down on the table. The assortment of fruits and sandwiches all looked delicious. The room itself was quite spacious with four beds to the left of the door and a desk to the right. Behind the table was a couch and behind that was an open door to a balcony. The walls and flooring were all dark woods, with carpets and tapestries.

Picking up one of the sandwiches I sat down on the couch and began taking in what was going on. Earlier I was only going with everything without thinking as to keep my cool. But now that I could sit down, the reality of the situation had hit me like a freight train.

The fighting, the betrayal, the uprising, the true nature of the waves, the choice we'd have to make.

The accusation. I knew that it was vital to Naofumi's development, the original shield hero, but now that I knew what was happening and the best course of action, it was possible I could work my way out of being convicted, yet still have the advantages Naofumi had.

Acquiring the rage shield might be difficult to pull off otherwise, but the core of the dragon Ren kills… and then causes a plague with, was giant to its advancement for the rage shield. I might be able to avoid needing to get angry if I can force it absorbing a being filled with rage.

"Hey Carter," My thoughts were cut off by Motoyasu. "You agree with me right. This world seems a lot like Emerald online right?"

'And an opportunity has presented itself. Let's see if I can save myself some trouble later.'

"Sorry pal, this doesn't remind me of any games." I proceeded to get up and walk towards the table. I waved my hand towards me to gesture them to come towards the table. I learned in and, thankfully, they did as well, getting the message.

"Look," I said in a low whisper. "I need ya'll to listen to me and listen closely. All of us are from a different world. To all of you, this looks like a game, but this showed up to me as an anime. So far the only thing that has changed is me. Originally it was another man from Japan named Naofumi Iwatani."

"Alright, you know something we don't. Why do we have to whisper than."

"Right now we're being listened to and if they don't have a visual on us, they should have taken the bait and tomorrow will talk about a rumor of me having no knowledge of this world."

"Why is that?" Itsuki asked.

"Unfortunately, I can't tell you much past that or I risk messing up future events more than they already will be."

"You are not making this easier to believe you." Ren said.

"I know, but I need you to trust me. Tomorrow, we will be given people to join our parties. No one will join mine but after a few minutes, someone will leave Motoyasu's party and join my own. That same person will accuse me of rape after stealing all my stuff."

They stopped and stared.

'They're skeptical. I don't blame them but that doesn't make it any easier for me.'

"How exactly does this go down?" Ren asked.

"Tomorrow night, we'll be at an inn having dinner. I'll go to bed early. During then, she'll steal all my stuff, give it to Motoyasu, and frame me for rape. The next morning, I get carried away to the palace and see you wearing my jacket. If you want proof of that it's mine, I'll put a note in it or something so you can confirm it."

Surprisingly, yet unsurprisingly, it was Motoyasu who spoke up first. "How do we know we can trust what you say. For all we know, you might be planning something and getting a cover story."

"I'd tell you more but I'm not sure if it'll hold up or not. It may change depending on what I do to try and avoid it myself."

They were quiet. It was good for a while but now it might be too long. "I think we've been 'quiet' for long enough. Start talking about something else, make it sound like we didn't just have a whole other conversation." I looked at them with pleading eyes. "Please." Motoyasu grinned and walked towards Ren.

"Hey Ren, you got someone special back in your world?" He said putting his arm over his shoulder. I was confused for a second but then realized what he was doing. I gave him a thumbs up. It didn't help with Rens annoyance which was perfect.

"No. Why do you care?"

"I'm just asking. You know in case we get sent to each other's worlds instead of our own when this is all said and down. You wouldn't want her wondering where her sweet little emo has gone." Ren only looked more annoyed.

"I don't date. Now get off me!" By now, Itsuki and I were both laughing.

"What about you, John? Got someone special?"

I laughed a bit more but stopped to talk. "I did but she didn't like me the same way. It sucked when I finally got the confidence to tell her."

Motoyasu put on a joke salute to me and said, "To our brother in the friend zone. May you rest in peace." with that, we all started laughing again. We talked about our lives in our old worlds while eating the food we were given. During the conversation, the topics of weapons were brought up. Motoyasu, once again, was the most outspoken of the three.

"Look, man, nobody goes shielder because it sucks, and no serious gamers ever play it."

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing I was the one who got it wasn't it. You see, I had a tendency of exploiting and getting away with it with some friends of mine. But in order to exploit, you have to know the rules in and out. And let me tell you, I know a little rule within the game that doesn't specify to well."

They leaned in to hear.

"You see, there's this little rule I found that says you can't wield any other weapon but your own legendary weapon. Seeing as the shield is stuck to me, that means I can only wield the shield. However, there's a second rule about weapon copying. And if you have the same kind of weapon as you legendary one, you can copy it and then use it later."

"And seeing as I have a naturally high affinity for blacksmithing and forging, I could, hypothetically, create a 'shield' with some 'very sharp and pointy ends' that may or may not be really good and stabbing things." I said with a grin. I leaned in and waved for them to as well. "Also, even as cool as it would be, I don't have a brainwashing shield." They looked at me with confusion for what had to be the eighth time tonight. "You'll get it when it becomes relevant."

Looking out the window I saw that it was well into the night. Looking back at the table I saw that all the food had been eaten. With a yawn and got up and moved to one of the four beds. "Well, it's late, we got stuff to do tomorrow, so I'm gonna get some sleep."

"Yeah, we probably should head to bed." Itsuki spoke up. The others agreed and got into their own beds as well. I didn't bother changing my clothes were getting in, only taking off my shoes.

"Night, see y'all tomorrow."


	2. Truth of Character

**Chapter 2, Truth of Character**

**Holy crap this one took a while. Tell me what you think of the things I've changed thus far. I'm trying to keep a more consistent picture of Carters old world while completely rewriting the war that happened.**

**Also, finally rewrote the wolves seen tell me what you think of that too, all criticism is accepted, unless its just like needless 'you suck' or whatever... Actually that's not really criticism, that's just being asshole-yeah all criticism is good.**

**Also, 9.6 thousand words... Jesus Christ I gotta be more concise with my writing.**

* * *

"Greetings heroes!" The king said loudly. We had gotten up not to long ago and eaten breakfast. After that, we headed to the throne room to receive our party members and financing. The King went on a triage about heroics and saving their world but I zoned out for most of it. It was only until he called in our party members that I came back to reality.

"Future Heroes, you may enter." The doors behind us opened and walked in some twelve people. "These people have been gathered from around to land and have chosen who they shall follow." The people walked closer to us and began gravitating towards who they would pick.

"Now, select the hero you shall attend!" I watched them choose and wasn't surprised by the results. Ren had five people, Itsuki had three, and Motoyasu had four. For some reason, Motoyasu's members were all women, a fact that is appearing more obscure to me now that I'm actually watching it in person.

Motoyasu leaned over to me and said, "Damn, I guess you were right about the members."

"Told you."

"Well," The King started, "Even I could not have predicted this." A man standing to the side walked up and began whispering in his ear. His fancy clothes suggested he was some sort of adviser. "I see, it would appear that a rumor has been spread that the Shield Hero knows nothing of our world."

I looked over at the others. They looked at me and nodded, noticing that it was exactly what I had aid as well.

"Well, what do you have to say Shield Hero?" The King asked.

"Well, I gotta ask who started that rumor because it's blatantly false." The King raised an eyebrow at this. Nobody else noticed but I was looking for some sort of reaction. 'So he was listening. I only guessed on the chatter of the show but it appears to have held true.'

"Secondly, I would like to request additional funds for gear or to hire my own party members in the city. I have no qualms working alone, and I can find a means of fighting, even if all I have is the shield, but to do so I will need a bit more in the ways of money."

The King stroked his beard as if in thought, debating if he should allow it or not. "Very well, I will provide you an additional two hundred silvers to acquire your own followers. But I cannot guarantee it to be easy."

"Not a problem. I thrive in difficult situations."

"Excuse me, if it's alright, I would like to volunteer to accompany the Shield Hero." 'And there it is.'

Looking to find the voice I saw a pale skinned girl with heavy red hair. She wore a simple white shirt with leather armor and a blue skirt. At her hip was a sword and some potions.

'Malty Melromarc. So far on track. Let's see if we can't change that.'

"You sure? You seemed rather contempt being in group only a second ago."

"I'm quite sure. I see now you are a good choice as a hero to follow. My heart simply bled at seeing you all alone."

'Yeah, you're not fooling anyone… I hope.'

Turning to Motoyasu, "You good with this?"

'Help me out here man.'

"Well I was hoping she would stay with me, but I guess I could be cool with it."

'No, no no. You are not cool with this. You are very jealous and want me to be forever alone.'

"Alright, thanks man."

'You will be the death of me.'

We received our money and left for the woods. I decided to go into the city beforehand in order to get some armor. With the addition of Myne to my party, I managed to get a few more coins from the king, a change that worked in my favor. Now I had about nine hundred silver to work with.

I was about to head down the walkway into the city but saw the other three. We wished each other good luck and moved down into the city. The story moved forward as it had originally. Myne began guiding me to an armor shop she said had good items to sell.

We were walking down the street when she spoke up again. "This is the place sir Hero."

'Please drop the sir Hero.'

"Thanks, Myne." Walking in, I was greeted with a quaint shop. Weapon and armor racks lined the sides of the walls and before me was a counter with an older man behind it. He was a simple shirt and his smithing apron. All his hair was on his face in a short spiky beard and a pair of leather gloves adorned his hands. He had a few scars across his head which I never figured out how he got but better not ask for now.

"Welcome. Are you a first time customer?"

"Yes, sir. Mind if I ask your name?" I said walking up to his desk.

"Well aren't we polite. Names Erhard. What are you looking for?"

"Hoping to get some armor for myself."

"Not any for your companion?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, I would like to know why as well." Myne spoke up.

"We may have been given extra but we still need to recruit others at some point. Besides you already have armor. It's not the most protective, but it'll work for now until we can get ourselves some more money. I, on the other hand, didn't arrive here with my combat armor."

"You were a knight before coming here?" Myne asked, not expecting me to have had actual combat experience. Militia armor was simple but effective. Treated-Kevlar base with light alloy plating over the chest, thighs, and shoulders, with a HUD and communications system built into the helmet. It wasn't built for anything more than small arms fire and short blade weapons, higher calibers were tougher on the armor.

"Not really the right name, and certainly not the same kind of warfare, but yeah, I've seen combat before."

"Not gonna get a weapon as well?" Erhard.

"Can't. The shield doesn't allow me to."

'Please don't ask how I already know that. Still a pain though. I'll need to make one for offense but I can't let her know. Can't show my cards too early.'

"But sir hero. If we spend more on armor now, we'll be able to procure more money easier."

'He he, that ain't working here.' I mentally taunted.

"Maybe, but we won't be going anywhere that'll require anything more than leather. It's best we save it for now and go with what we have for the smaller monsters than using the money we got from there to get better gear and jump to the larger ones."

She looked ready to retort but didn't. Either she gave up or didn't want to give herself up until she had what she wanted.

'Either way, it plays right into my hand so I can't complain.'

"Well, what kind of armor you looking for?"

"Some leather and chain mail would be good. Something that can work well for protection. Also gonna need a pair of pants and some boots."

Looking over the counter, Erhard could see neither my shoes nor shorts were good for combat. My shorts would probably be ripped seeing as the material wasn't built for combat purposes. My shoes were more like sandals as they'd fall apart as well under this kind of stress as well. Not to mention they were at risk of falling off when I was running.

He nodded and went into the back of his shop. A few minutes passed out and he brought out a brown leather jacket, black pants, and a pair of leather boots. He handed them to me and went into one of the changing rooms to put them on. When I walked back out, I was wearing a jacket, boots, and pants. I still had my backpack with me and had it strapped over my jacket.

'I'm gonna be so happy when I get something else for armor. This thing actual an eye sore.'

I purchased a few more utility items. A utility knife, work gloves, canvas, and rope that he had laying around. Most of the items went into my bag while the rope was absorbed the rope into my shield and was happy to see myself obtain the rope shield. Unfortunately I had not met the level requirements for the Air Strike Shield and wasn't able to use it yet. I looked through some of the shields he had when Myne wasn't looking and copied them for myself. Out the ones I saw, I picked that a tower shield, spiked shield, and dueling shield.

The tower shield was simple. Black iron plates, a rather 'early game' magic alloy, layered and fused with each other with a solid rim made up the body of the shield. It was large and came above my shoulders. The spiked shield was round, covering my whole forearm and then some, with a large spike at the front of it. The metal was smooth and flat, unlike the tower shields jagged design. The dueling shield was the strangest of them. It was similar to the tower shield, being plates stacked and welded on top of each other but with prongs at the front and back. It was wielded with both hands on a bar behind it as opposed to being strapped to my arm. It lacked the smooth trim in place for sharp edges.

'This is gonna be fun. But I wonder, is black iron a special alloy or is it iron infused with magic? And can it be turned into magic steel?'

I pushed those thoughts back for later. I looked over to Myne and got her attention. She seemed sour as she was still wearing her leather armor.

"Hey Myne, go ahead and start heading over to the fields. I'll catch up, I just need to finish up paying." She looked like she was about to protest but decided to anyway. As she walked out I immediately brought Erhard close to me. "Listen, I don't have much time, but I need you to hold on to this." I handed him two bags of silvers. The first was his pay, the second was was all my remaining funds.

"This probably doesn't make a whole lot of sense right now, but out of the heroes, I was gifted with knowledge of future events." It sounded better than 'yeah, your world was a show I watched for entertainment in my old world'. "Tonight, I'll be accused of a crime I didn't commit. I'm trying to prevent that by creating a situation that can't be shifted to appear as I did. This is your pay, plus what I need you to hold onto, since my stuff will be stolen, including this jacket."

He looked like he was about to talk, but I cut him off. "Look, I know that this is very confusing, trust me, I am right there with you, but I have to go. I'll be back later tonight." I left before he could retort. It was probably not the best way, but I'm still figuring this out.

When I walked out, I could just make out Myne heading down the street. I quickly caught up with her and we walked to fields where we would be hunting. When I caught up to her, she asked what else I had to do. I brought up my spike shield, surprising her. She asked how I had gotten it and I told her that there were ways I could obtain shields outside of monster drops. I lied that Erhard being a blacksmith could unlock shields for my use.

When we got to the fields, I proceed to try and stab a balloon with the spike on my shield. My original plan was to only get enough to bring me to level two, but upon discovering just how bouncy the damn things were, I realized that wouldn't be something I'd have to pretend to do.

It was only after I had killed the first few that I managed to get the hang of it. When I really started picking up kills was when a whole pack came out and charged me. I ran at them with my spiked shield, wiping out as many as I could.

"Um… Sir Shield Hero…"

I continued to bat them around, taking out as many as I could.

"Sir Shield Hero…!"

Letting out a war cry, I charged a group of red balloons that had joined together and hit all three of them, creating a show of red confetti. I laughed at how well this situation was starting to play out in my favor.

"Sir Shield Hero!" I stopped laughing and looked at Myne confused. "Does that not hurt?"

I blinked and looked down on myself. All on me were the remnants of the pack, biting down trying to hurt me.

But all I felt was some poking from their teeth, not even some added weight.

'Oh yeah, forgot how weak these things were.' I began pulling them off and popping them one by one. By the end of the experience I had succeeded in becoming level two. I looked out into the open and a thought to me.

'I could run. Grab some gear, ditch Myne, snag Raphtalia, and head to Siltvelt. It'd be a long trip, but it's certainly do-able.' I played with the idea a bit longer before I remembered what I had already set up. 'No. I've already set this up so I can get the heroes on my side. If I run, I could go right back to square one, maybe even be worse off than before. She'd be free to accuse me and I'd look guilty as hell. Best to stick with what I got right now and decide from then on.'

As we were heading back, we took a path that ended up near the forest. Myne tried to strike up a conversation.

"Sir Hero, if I may, you said you were a soldier in your old world. But you also said that combat is quite different in your world. May I ask what what kind of experience you've had?"

I raised my eyebrow. 'She's asking to be nice, that's for sure. Digging up information or trying to get me friendly with her… I can use this. If I tell her one of my more…. Brutal, experiences I might be able to make her choke up. Make a mistake in her accusation that'll help me out further.'

"Sure. The combat I saw was different, instead of engaging with magic or swords, we used primarily ranged weapons and mechanized infantry.'

"Mech-on-ized?" She said slowly.

"Soldiers utilizing heavy machinery. A main battle tank, one such weapons, is a heavily armored unit. Taking them down requires specially designed weapons, be it punching through the armor or simply blowing it up with a high power explosive. There's a lot of other weapons. Jet fighters, rigs, gunships, carriers, destroyers, bombardment platforms, drop pods, explaining all of them would take a long time."

"And your experience?"

"Firefights with religious fanatics. Not all that long ago, my world had finished an event named World War III. It was on a scale no one had ever seen before. The death toll peaked at around two hundred billion across eight different planets and moons. Earth, Mars, Saturn, Mercury, Luna, Phobos, Deimos, and Europa. A religious group calling themselves the 'Red Sons' had spread throughout all of colonized space. The war was their crusade. The 'first day the world would bow before them."

"And you fought in this war?"

"No. I, and everyone else born to early to fight, had deal with the stragglers. While we had won, the war had left all but the core worlds, Earth and Mars, in complete shambles, with sleeper cells still implanted on all of them. I saw combat when we discovered the location of a cell near my home city, Houston. Not taking any chances, almost every soldier in that district was mobilized for back up. I was placed in command of the closest squad to the actual raid. Our job was to bulk up the police forces that would act like a second line should the military fail, but when the fighting broke out and all hell broke loose, the fanatics ran into us."

"Forgive me for saying this but that doesn't sound very… Difficult. You fought a shattered force that was escaping, not a full battle."

"Your right. It doesn't. At Least it wouldn't have been if they weren't a gene soldier."

"Gene soldier?"

"Genetically modified humans. Brutes we called. Think of them as people altered before they were born to be fighters, and brutal ones at that. Ten feet tall and strong enough to rip a person limb from limb. To make it worse, this one was wrapped in titanium armor and hyped up on so many drugs that it couldn't even feel pain. Killed four guys and injured eleven others before we finally managed to crack its armor and take it down."

Myne stuttered in our walk, staring agape at me, unsure of what to make of my story. It wasn't a mere tail either. It was difficult after watching that. Didn't sleep for three days.

"You seem to have no trouble talking about this… You are…" She thought, trying to think of the right.

I chuckled. "Yeah. Thankfully neuroscience is one hell of a thing in my world too. Since chemical formulas are cheaper and quicker than training new soldiers, screenings for PTSD are standard. Docs went in, found whatever part of my head wasn't quite right and fixed it."

"You… weren't saddened?"

"I was sad for sure. I may have only been a proxy for police forces, but half the men that were either killed or injured were under my command. But all you can really do is learn to live with it and carry on to the next fight."

"You speak like your rather experienced for someone so young."

"Have to. I might have an easier life than most, but make no mistake, I've seen some hell. Got my time in though so I got offered a full ride through college and a pick of whichever school I wanted."

We continued to walk in silence. Myne thought about what I had told her while I kept an eye out for any other monsters. As we walked a pair of hogs came running out of the brush. They were big, coming up to just about my mid-thigh, and brandishing large, yellow tusk.

Without thinking, I made a dead sprint at the pack. The pig I was aiming for screeched at me but was met with a spike shield to the head. The other three quickly tried surrounding while I summoned my dueling shield. I swung the shield in a wide arc and managed to catch a second in the neck. I was too slow to take my shield out and however, and the third charged my leg, knocking me onto one of my knees.

The boar turned around but I kicked it in the face before it could try anything. The fourth joined in and charged me. I rolled out of the way and stood up. When the pigs charged, I swung my shield in a wide arc and left a deep cut down the whole left side of one. The shield carried on and hooked the other with a barb at the end.

The first pig fell over dead while the other remained stuck on my shield. I forced my shield forward and pushed the boar off onto its side. Before it could get up, I brought the shield down, impaling its side. It squealed and squirmed for a bit but ultimately fell dead.

'Note to self, dueling shields are awesome.'

I looked to where the came from. 'No way that's it.' I thought.

Hogs were pack animals. For there to only be four wasn't impossible, but it was certainly an oddity.

"Hey Myne, I'm gonna go look through where those hogs came from. You head on over to the city." I said, leaving no room for debate. She didn't respond. As to why, I wasn't sure.

'Maybe it was realizing the 'useless shield' can actually kick ass.' I chuckled to myself.

As I walked through the brush, it became more and more clear as to what direction the hogs came from. Torn up ground, hoof prints, and bloodied grass made it clear a fight between a pack of hogs and something else had happened. When I had made it to a clearing, what the second animal was became clear.

Mixed in with dead hogs were wolves, with a somewhat clear split in the placement of bodies. The wolves were slightly larger than the hogs, height wise, but there was far fewer. Near some of the trees were holes that led underground. However, by the hogs were mutiple bodies of wolf pups.

'Hogs must've came onto the wolf den, got in, and snagged some pups. The wolves fought back but it ended up being costly for both sides. Those four earlier must've been some of the stragglers. Might've still been in a frenzy so they attacked me on sight.'

It wasn't guaranteed, but as of now it was the only thing that made sense. As I looked over the scene, I saw russling near the wolf den. Crawling out of the den were three wolf pups, all of them shaking and banged up pretty badly. I walked over slowly but they pulled back and started growling.

I got near the ground and held out my.

"Hey little guys." I said quietly. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna hurt you."

I moved my hand closer bit by bit and the three wolves stopped growling and started coming out. When they got close enough, Imanaged to begin cratching one of their heads with my finger. The pup hesitant, but started coming out a bit more, with the other two following.

I took out the tarp and laid it one the ground, guiding the wolves near it. I wrapped the trio in the blanket and picked up.I was about to head back to the road when I saw some unique looking leaves and decided to take a chance. Grabbing them and feeding them into my shield, I was gifted with the plant shield. I equipped the shield, it being a large, green leaf, and picked up a few more leaves. The quality of the leaves were enhanced and I put them into my pockets.

Bringing up my list, I brought up the list of ingredients needed for potions that I was given as well. Looking through, I could see that the leafs made the primary part of the potion, with other parts being meant for higher quality. All I would need was something to put the liquid in.

I closed the screen and began heading back towards the rode, deciding to pick up vials for the potion in the city.

When I met back up with Myne, she questioned why I had decided to pick up the wolf cubs. I simply told her I was a dog person and might be able to train the wolves when they grow up. She didn't question any further.

It wasn't long until we found ourselves at an inn. I had placed the wolves in the chair next to me and was giving them parts of the food I had ordered that I was sure they could eat. On our way through town I had picked up some vials for the medicine and it seemed to do the trick for them. The meal itself was decent. It wasn't the most lavish but it wasn't the cheapest either. It was pretty tasty so I wasn't complaining. In front of us was a map that Myne was going over with me. On it was the city and some surrounding villages. I didn't pay attention to much past that as it would still be some time til I ventured past Riyute village, a small place not far from the city.

"We were out in the fields over here," she said, pointing to a rather dry area of the map. "Over here is a dungeon that's perfect to leveling up as a starter. We won't get much outside of monster drops, but it'll help us with experience." I nodded to what she was saying. I noted it in the back of my mind since she certainly wasn't going to take me there tomorrow, but I could still use it.

She looked at me and noticed that I had some bags under my eyes. Truth be told, I hadn't gotten much sleep before coming here, as I had only just finished an engineering project that left myself and the entire class brain dead.

"Shield Hero, you must be tired. Here, have some wine." She said, handing me a glass that was near us.

"No thank you. I've never been a fan of it." I wasn't saying that because I knew what she had planned, I honestly disliked the taste of wine. It messed with me in ways I didn't like.

She seemed surprised and disappointed but didn't try pushing it.

'Must be too tired with me today to try and convince me.'

I looked down and noticed I had eaten all my food. Before the conversation could continue, I decided to wrap things up early.

"Whelp, I'm gonna drop some of my gear off in my room and head back out. You good with that"

"Your leaving? But we have an early day tomorrow!" She said, starting to reach her limit with how much she could deal with me today.

"And I'm a whole different reality where magic exists. The closest thing to magic in my world is just smoke, mirrors, and holograms. Illusion stuff. Not the 'through fire your hands' magic."

"Then at least let me accompany you sir hero." Myne retaliated.

"Nah, we do have an early day tomorrow. Finish your meal and get some sleep."

"But you… That…" She sighed, completely exasperated.

"I'll take that as a 'your good with it'." I said before heading upstairs with the wolves. I found my room and entered before closing the door. It was lightly furnished. A one person bed towards the wall with a window opposite the door and a wardrobe near it, with a desk and chair to the side. The walls and floor were all wood.

'Time to get to work.' I thought to myself. I set the pups down and took off the coat which, despite being as helpful as it was, was one of the ugliest pieces I had ever seen. I threw the jacket onto the bed before digging into my pack. To my luck, I still had my notebooks. Most of them were just scribbled ideas and designs I had. Not groundbreaking pieces of technology but certainly items I was proud of. Ripping out a blank page from one of them, I scribbled down a drawing of my shield and stuffed the picture into the pocket of the jacket.

I couldn't write Japanese and odds were Motoyasu couldn't read English so this was my best bet. I draped the jacket over a chair near the wall of the room before putting my pack back on and grabbing the dogs.

'If I'm lucky, she won't bat an eye that I only left the jacket and take it while I'm out. Motoyasu will catch on and back me up during the accusation. Maybe I can even get witnesses that I left before Myne went up to her room.' I grinned. 'It's all coming together.'

I left the room and went down to the main area where, to my relief, was still at the table. 'Now how to-oh-ohhh-hoho-that's perfect.'

"Excuse me sir." I said to the man at the desk. He wore a regular suit and vest, nothing super special but it did well to separate him from the crowd. "Could you hold onto this?"

I handed him the key to my room. "I'm gonna be heading out around the city for a bit and figured it'd be better to leave that here. I have a tendency of losing small things." I said while rubbing the back of my head, making sure my shield was visible before resting my hands on the desk.

"Oh-yes sir, I'll keep an eye on it for you." The man said with a smile.

"Thank you. And if you have any questions about money or what-not while I'm out, feel free to ask my partner over there." I said pointing at Myne who was still eating her food. I leaned forward and whispered. "She's worse but don't tell her I said that."

He laughed a bit. "Yes sir. When will you be getting back?"

"Honestly mate, I got no idea. Depends on how long it takes me to find stuff for these three." I said gesturing to the wolves before walking out.

'Witness in place with evidence, I'm nowhere near where the 'crime' should be happening. Now time to grab my stuff at Erhard's.'

The walk to Erhards shop was short but it felt like an eternity. Problems were always guaranteed, especially with quickly thrown together plans like this. There wasn't any guarantee this would work out. It could even end worse than before. I was finally brought out of my thoughts when I opened the door to Erhards shop.

He was standing at the desk towards the back of the shop looking through some papers when he looked up and saw me. His face shifted into a strange mix of surprise, confusion and anticipation.

"Hey Erhard." I said.

"... Hey Carter… You wanna explain earlier to me?"

'Oh yeah, I did kinda leave him hanging there.'

"Alright man. Look, you remember what I told you earlier right? About me being framed for a crime tonight I didn't commit?"

"Mostly, yes."

"Alright, well the girl that was with me is the one who'll do it. She'll steal all my things, and leave me on my own. Past that is anyone's guess with how much this event has changed.." He looked ready to question but closed his mouth before he did. He must've seen the look in my eye or something like that. He did it with Naofumi to know he wasn't a rapist, must've worked with me to know I'm telling the truth.

It was then he noticed the bag of dogs under hanging on my shoulder. He raised an eyebrow at but I simply answered "I'm a dog person."

He just shrugged, no doubt having heard weirder things today.

"Alright, how can I help."

"I need three things. The first a new set of armor. Preferably more plating and with a cloak. The second in a new shield. Custom made. The last is a metal mask I can use to hide most of my face."

He raised an eyebrow. "You have the money for that? Or was that the money you gave me earlier?"

"The money I gave you earlier."

"I see." He said, pulling out the bag of silvers and placing it onto the counter for me. "Well, wait here, lemme get something that you'll like." He went into the back and pulled out something that I certainly liked.

The armor consisted of leather coverings for my forearms, outer thighs and torso. The smooth, metal chest piece seemed it would fit snugly over the leather so it wouldn't move when I was fighting. Taking a closer look at the chest piece, I could see the neck piece came up higher in the front to protect my throat. The cloak he brought out was a dark green with a hood that tightened itself to keep from falling off.

"How does this look to you?"

"Looks great. Now for the shield and mask, I have something in mind but I'm not sure how well I can describe it."

"Well, you could come into the back and help me out with both. It's not the first time I've had someone come talking to me about making a shield into something that'll work as more of a weapon. I can work on that while you handle the mask. How high is your smithing?"

Bringing up my stats again to remind myself, I found that my affinity for smithing was above average, being a natural nine.

"Natural nine from what I can see. That work for you?"

"That's a pretty high natural. You should get the hang right after I teach you basics."

"Alright, sounds good. And thanks man, I really need this help."

"Don't mention it." We headed into the back were we set to work. I first set down stuff on a table by the entrance, along with my jacket. He first taught me the basics of how to forge items. To his credit, I did get the hang of it rather quickly. He set off to work, creating and sculpting the plates and blades needed for the shield. I set to work creating the mask.

We first drew out our designs to best know what we would do and correct anything if we found something that wouldn't work. Erhard, demonstrating his mastery at smithing, pointed out the flaws in mine and my credit as an engineer, gave him an easier yet stronger internal structure for him to build.

Though as far as help went, his went to me more than mine went to him.

Looking out I could see it past midnight, and we had both made good headway on our respective builds. It was now that the cubs had stirred and began howling. Putting down my tools, I got up and moved towards the cubs. I began petting the cubs in the hopes of calming them down and keeping them from howling. It was cute to see but distracting to hear when working.

It was now I realized that I hadn't thought of any names for them. Quickly doing a check, I found the largest one was female, while the two smallest ones were male. I figured that the female must of been older since the males were usually a bit larger. The two brothers, or atleast assumed brother, weren't the same size either, with one being a bit larger than the other.

"Well, aren't you three just adorable. Now what am I going to call you three." Looking up at the moon they were howling at, a few names came to mind.

"How about for you, we call you… Luna, and for you two… Phobos and Deimos."

"Those are strange names you got kid. Where'd you come up with them?" Erhard asked, taking off his tinted glasses.

"There the names of some of the moons from my world. The first is home to the Lunar port for Earth, while the other two are of the Martian colonies." I looked over and saw him entirely confused.

"Mars? Lunar gateway-what are you talking about?"

'...I guess he wouldn't have any idea what I was talking about.'

"Basically, my world never had any magic. So instead, we relied on technology. We advanced so much that your people would think it were magic, or simply impossible. One area we advanced into was space travel and planet colonization. The Lunar gateway is basically the port used by ships when navigating between Earth and Mars or anywhere else for that matter. Mars is the fourth planet in our system and the first true human colony to make that make sense. It's not as big as Earth so gravity's a bit funky but it's abundant in resources. The moons too."

"Another planet huh." He said looking up at the moon through the window. "Damn, I could only imagine. New world, new life, seeing something somewhere nobody's ever been. I wonder what it'd be like to take a breath of fresh air there."

"I wouldn't recommend it. Mars and Luna might be pretty developed but life is pretty tough. Waters scarce on Mars except for the poles and life is pretty much entirely underground, since radiation shielding is both expensive and harder to produce on that planet. Luna's even worse. You jump hard enough and you can end up drifting in space. Bone deterioration is a constant problem and artificial gravity can only do so much. Atmosphere is either toxic or non-existent too so that breath of fresh is probably gonna kill you in a horrific way when you start pressure differences into account."

Erhard simply looked at me in disbelief, no doubt surprised at how hostile both environments are.

"Why would someone want to go there! That sounds like a horrible place to live."

"Simple, resources. My world is still plentiful with resources, especially after the creation of mantle mining techniques. But there are restrictions. Do too much, and you could affect the whole planet, and not in the good way. Pit mining techniques for resources like lithium required whole chunks of forest be removed. Mars on the other hand, being desolate to start with, has no mining restrictions. For all anyone cares, we could mine the whole planet dry. Colonists don't have any issue with the heavy mining either since it opens up more city space."

"The moon on the other hand isn't as resource rich, but it does possess Helium-three, a resource that, while useless to your people, is almost the cornerstone of all our technology." Looking back at him, I could see he was confused. "You remember how I said our technology was incredibly advanced. Well, all of it requires energy or fuel to work. Helium three is the primary component in running our fusion reactors, our main energy generators. Without energy, our technology would be useless. There are other forms, but they aren't as productive or reliable."

"Oil and coal where the standard for a long time, but some countries like China burned too much and began and made there air sickening to breathe. Clean coal technologies came around and fixed that but our energy needs outgrew how it actually produced and it was really better used in production of materials than energy.

"Other countries swapped to green energy, power generated by wind, water and light, but did so poorly and wrecked their energy grids in the process. And that's not even getting into how toxic the chemicals for solar panels are. Wind turbines aren't too bad but the amount of deforestation needed for a single farm had its own bad effects."

"The only power we still use is nuclear energy. It had a bad name for a long time since early designs were made to be less safe and more cost efficient, quite a few failed and caused untold damage. Chernobyl, one of the most poorly constructed reactors to date, ended up turning a whole city uninhabitable for the better part of a century. People could still venture, but after some time they'd get radiation sickness. Only recently has the place been considered safe for humans to live. Hiroshima failed and leaked radiation into the ocean for almost three decades and destroyed the entire coastal ecosystem near that side of Japan. Once again poor design were to blame with that, since some moron thought putting the back up generators in a low point in tsunami prone area was a good. Thorium reactors offered a good replacement though, since it's a lot more stable and a lot more abundant."

"The only energy that can out do fusion is, funnily enough, solar energy. It sucks on Earth and especially Mars but the sun-orbiters are so close to the sun they end up pulling insane amounts of energy. energy collectors around our systems star. They collect a mass energy equivalent of three pounds every year and beam to orbiting stations on our other worlds. Granted your shooting a highly concentrated beam of energy at massive distance so being even just a little off can cause big problems real fast."

I looked back and noticed that he was simply staring blankly at me trying to comprehend all that I said.

"Sorry, I guess that was a little much. I tend to go on these long tangents about stuff."

"No, it was quite interesting to hear when I could understand what you were saying."

We shared a laugh and before returning to our work.

* * *

"And, done." I said, wiping away no small amount of sweat from my brow. I picked up my mask and was ecstatic with how it turned out. The main frame was metal that would strap nicely to my face. The inside was done with leather so it was comfortable to wear. The bit over my mouth was solid but extended out to let me breathe without trouble.

Looking out I could see it was now morning. We had pulled an all-nighter constructing both the shield and mask. I showed Erhard the mask I had made and he inspected every detail of it.

"Interesting design. I can't say I've seen anything like it."

"I guess that happens when you come from another world." I said smiling at the approval he had on his face for the object. "Hey, thanks again man. This is a huge help." I said with weight behind my words.

"Think nothing of it. I see what kind of person you are. You don't deserve to be accused for something you shouldn't. Nobody does." He took the mask behind a tarp he had set up. He had brought the armor and shield behind there are well. His reason was that the shield and armor was "A piece of work that had to be honored in full." He came back out with a smile so big it covered the bags under his eyes.

"Alright Shield Hero, you ready to see it?"

"I've been ready, I'm just waiting for you to drop the tarp." I said with a smile. I was tired of waiting to see it, though he no doubt noticed how giddy I was to see with.

"And with that I present-" He was cut off the sound of the front door being busted open. We both ran out to the front and saw a group of guards. They immediately pointed their weapons at me.

"Shield Hero, you are under arrest for the accusation of rape!"

"What!?" Erhard looked at me surprised to hear it, but stepped forward to defend me nonetheless.

'No Erhard, don't do it. You've done your part, let me do mine.'

"Sir, he's been here all night. There's no way he could've done committed-" He was cut off by the blunt end of the spear hitting him the stomach.

He fell on his knees, not expecting the blow.

"Bring him as well."

'What!?'

"Leave him alone, he hasn't done any-" I was cut off by a strike from the same spear-man.

"Take them to the carts."

I look at Erhard apologetically, hoping to convey that I didn't mean for him to get caught up like this. He looked back, seeing the look I had. He gave me one as well, saying he knew I didn't.

They dragged us to the carts and hauled us off to the palace. We were 'escorted' to the Throne room where the King, other three heroes, a large amount of guardsmen, and, behind Motoyasu, was Myne.

"You… DEMON! I knew you would show you true colors!" The King yelled. I was enraged to hear it, but knew it was coming and did my best to reign in anger.

"Your Majesty, I don't know what you are talking about. What am I being brought here for?" Truth be, I knew what it was, but I had to act the part.

"Myne, my dear. Forgive me, but may you recount your testimony?" The King said to the redhead in question.

She feigned tears behind Motoyasu, while acting as if she were incredibly saddened. "Late last night, when we were at the inn, the Shield was drunk. He barged into my room and he… he…"

"There is no need to go any further. He should know now." The King said with disgust.

"Your Majesty, I never did any of that. I never drank any alcohol last night. I never forced my way into her room, Hell I wasn't even at the inn. Ask the man at the front desk, he should still have the key to my room."

"We have asked him." Said an older looking man by the kings side.

A guard that was standing to the side stepped forward. He was wearing a mask so I couldn't see his face. Next to him was a man in a suit.

But it wasn't the same person.

"Your majesty, while the Shield did leave the inn last night, he came back sometime later, stumbling drunkenly."

"Lies!" I yelled. "That's not even the same person!"

"Guards! Bring in what you found!" The king allowed.

The guard next to the suit walked forward and took a knee. "Sir. When we searched the apartment, we found… uh." He stuttered for a second, reaching behind him. "We found this in the Shields room." He held out a pair of women's purple lingerie.

"More lies! I went to my room once before leaving and it was to drop off my leather coat! Not only that, but I was at the shop with the blacksmith all night!"

"It's true your majesty! I spent that night putting together a new shield for him! He paid handsomely for the construct and even assisted in it himself!"

"And who are you? A demon like him!? A criminal who's sympathetic to the Shield?!"

"No your majesty! Like I said, I'm a blacksmith from the city. The Shield Hero and his companion came into my shop yesterday to buy armor and supplies!" It was now he noticed the jacket on Motoyasu. "Wait, that's the same jacket I sold the Shield Hero yesterday!"

He smiled. "What? This jacket was a present from Myne last night."

"No, the smiths right. It's mine. I placed a note inside of it so in case it was mixed with others like it, I could tell which was mine. It should be in the inside pocket."

'You dumb ass, I told you about that two nights ago! How did you not see it!'

"What note? I found nothing in here that would tell me it was yours!"

'But… How!? I put that note in the-' And there it was.

That look.

That damned look.

Behind Motoyasu was Myne, smiling with her hands beside her face. She pulled down on her right eye and stuck her tongue out. Glancing at Motoyasu, I could see the look of conflicting thoughts going through his head, before ultimately steeling himself.

'He… He saw it… He knows... That… You…!'

'YOU!'

"TRAITOR!" I bellowed. Everyone in the room flinched. Many of the guards stepped back in fear. I shot forward but was caught by a pair of spears blocking my path. I pushed forward, slowly breaking through.

"Draw swords! Subdue the Shield!" With a snap, my hands were free, the metal shattering. I backhanded the first guard who dropped to the ground, his helmet dented. The second pushed forward with his sword drawn. I swatted it out of the way and gut punched him with my shield, caving his armor.

Before I could move to the next guard, something struck the back of my leg. I fell on my knee and was hit by a second blow to my back. I fell on all fours but ignored the pain. Before I could get back up, my arms were pulled behind me by a guard each, forcing my face down. I pulled against my captors, but two more appeared locked me in place.

"The Shield has shown his true self!" The King declared. He turned to Erhard. "And what of you 'blacksmith'!? What do you say in your defense!?"

"Your Majesty, I'm telling you, the Shield is-!" He was struck by the blunt end of a sword and restrained in a similar way to me.

"Silence! I will have no more lies in my court!" He turned back to me. "Shield Hero! The crime of rape is severe within this country. Those convicted of attempted action face the death penalty for it!"

"Then why don't you send me already!? Summon another Shield Hero and move on?!"

"As much as it pains me, I cannot. It says that we no knew Heroes may be summoned until the first four have met their end."

'I already knew that but… but…'

I began to slowly chuckle before breaking out into an all out laugh. "You know I knew this was coming, but holy crap, is hearing it even better!"

"What are laughing at!?"

"I'm laughing at you fat ass! You want to know the truth. I'll give you truth. I knew this was coming. I knew this was going to happen. I knew you would set me up. I knew who was a part of this. And I knew who was needed to make it all work." I looked at Myne. "Isn't that right Malty?"

The entire room flinched. "Malty? Her name is Myne!" Yelled Motoyasu.

"No. It isn't." I looked at the king. "You said you want no more lies? Than allow me to clear up a few! Her full name is Malty Melromarc, first born princess to the throne, but decided against in favor for your younger sister Melty on account of big sis being the brat of the family. And you Aultcray. Your a proxy king, married into the royal bloodline by your wife, Queen Mirelia, who'll soon be travelling in order to prevent a war from breaking out on account of you summoning all four of the heroes to Melromarc instead of having one hero summoned to each country."

"I knew your bitch of a daughter would try to accuse me of this. So I devised a plan. Gather witnesses, get the heroes on my side, and create a situation where framing me would be utterly impossible." I looked at Motoyasu. "But I suppose the spear isn't the same brain dead playboy he was supposed to, and just traitorous bastard instead. And it looks like other two aren't any better." I said glaring at Ren and Itsuki.

"But you wanna the beauty of fore-knowledge?" I asked, starting to laugh. "It's that I know what's coming for you. After the third wave, you'll be at my mercy and your lives will be in my hands. Your crimes against the country will come out for all to see and your wife will have no choice but to sentence you and Malty to execution. So tell trash King! What will you-"

"SILENCE!" For the second time, everyone in the room flinched. The King stared at me with pure malice. "I said I will have no lies! I have heard nothing but from you! I cannot kill you, but that does not mean I can't kill your conspirator."

'My conspira-?oh shit.'

The guard next to Erhard drew his sword. "You shall confess to what you have down or I shall kill the blacksmith." It was now the other heroes spoke up.

"Your Majesty, he's civilian!" Itsuki spoke up.

"Yah King, don't you think this a bit-"

"Shut it! Now confess Demon!"

"I did nothing! I am innocent, and so is he!"

"Lies! Guard, prepare to kill the smith!" The guard lined his weapon with Erhards neck, preparing to cut his head off.

"King! Think about what you're doing! He's innocent!" Yelled Ren.

"You continue to!? Kill the smith!" The room became an uproar.

"King, you can't be serious!" Ren yelled.

"Did I waver!? No! Now kill him!" The guard brought his sword up as ready to bring to bring it down. He began to bring down his blade.

"I confess!" The blade stopped mere inches away from Erhards neck.

"What was that Shield Hero?" The King asked, a deranged smile creeping up on his face.

Grunting with rage "I said 'I confess'. I confess that I forced the blacksmith to lie. I forced him to forge me a shield without payment and threatened his life if he didn't comply."

Erhard looked at me with disbelief. "Kid… You-"

"Quiet. They know now. You don't have to lie anymore."

"I never-"

"I'm sparing your life old man! Now go! You have no reason to be here anymore."

The King waved his hand and the guards dropped Erhard. He got up and looked at me, ready to say something. I didn't look back, too enraged to look up from the floor. He closed his mouth and looked towards the door, running out of the throne room.

"There. You have what you want."

"I do. Now leave. I am sick of your filth in my presence!" The guards released me. I stood up and turned towards the door. I stopped before opening.

"Cowards and traitors."

"What was that!?" The King yelled, past the point of reasoning.

"I said," Turning around, my anger resurfacing in full. "Cowards and traitors! Each of you three Heros. You knew what I told you. You knew this would happen. And you did nothing! Of course, this won't be your last utter failure."

"What are you talking about!?" Ren shouted, worried by what he was hearing.

"He he. Oh where to start. Outside of the waves, I'd say your three are the biggest threats to Melromarc. Every action you take only results death after death."

'To Hell with diplomacy. To Hell with king, and to Hell with the Heroes.'

"Ren, you cause a plague that wipes out half a village. Itsuki, you end up taking a district that was going through a famine, and in trying to save them, put in rulers that just starve them more. Oh and how could I forget you?" I said, looking and Malty. "Your own damn plans blow up in your face. Your own 'allies' try to kill you after you run out any uses. Man, it's almost no-one wants you, huh?" I turned to the doors, chuckling to myself at the future.

"Hey wait!" Motoyasu yelled grabbing my hand.

"And oh, Motoyasu, where to start with you. Shall I start with nearly taxing a town into collapse. Or shall it be when you unleashed a plant monster that almost devours an entire town. Or should it be another one of your many great failures."

"Why you-" He let go of me and thrust his spear forward. I blocked it my shield, now on the left arm, and grabbed him by the throat with my right. Forcing him back and throwing him the ground, I planted my foot on his chest.

"And while we're on the subject, I might as well 'prophecise' a little something else." All humor in my voice had been drained, and all my attention was now focused on Motoyasu. "You will be the weakest of the Heroes. Giving shows a strength but never achieving anything greater." Leaning down and dropping my voice. "I will remember this betrayal. And you will see my wrath for it." I pushed off his chest, leaving him coughing on the ground.

The guards didn't dare step in my way, all of them fearing for their lives. But it wasn't the show that made them afraid. It wasn't the demonstration of strength I possessed. It wasn't the predictions of failure there 'saviors were supposed to be. It wasn't the declaration of revenge that had them scared.

It was that, during my show of rage, my eyes had changed from the soft brown they were, to a dark, sickly green.

None of them left the room in well, especially Motoyasu.

And especially Malty.


	3. Good Friends in Odd Places

Chapter 3, Good Friends in Odd places

I left the palace, still enraged by what had gone down.

'I trusted them. I thought they would help me. I thought. I thought…'

I punched the wall next to me out of anger, letting a solid crack echo throughout the palace. "Things would be different." I pulled my hand out of the indention in the stone wall.

Walking down into the city, everyone avoided me. Vendors closed there shops, civilians would back away, and guards would watch me for the slightest excuse to draw their swords. As I walked, I didn't look up from the ground, too angry to think of anything else. It wasn't until I was pulled to the side that I was shaken from my thoughts.

Looking at the figure, the first thing I could glimpse was the full body cloak they were wearing. I tried to force my way out as I was being pulled along, but couldn't break the grip. They leaned down while we were running and said, "Chill kid, it's me." I recognized the voice.

Erhard.

I stopped struggling and began following. He noticed and let go, but didn't drop pace while running through the network of alleyways. We kept running until we reached a part of path that was secluded from eyesight. Erhard dropped his hood and looked at me. We stood there and collected our thoughts.

"Look, Erhard-"

"Thanks."

I paused. "What?"

"Thanks. You risked your life for me. Thought this was the least I could do." He held out things. The first one was my own. It looked full, more so than when it was earlier this morning. The second was a basket with the three wolves, Luna, Phobos, and Deimos. Under them was a soft blanket and around each of their necks was a small leather collar.

Opening my bag, I found the armor and mask that I had left at Erhards, along with all my other items and a few more. I looked over the armor, satisfied, but noticed I was missing something.

"Where's the shield?"

"Why don't you look?" I looked up and was greeted with the sight of a magnificent weapon. In erhards hands was a dark, silvery shield. It stemmed from a gauntlet with a soft leather lining. Fused to it was plate upon plate of an alloy I hadn't seen before. It created a sort of, angular shell appearance on my arm, going from over my hand to behind my elbow. It wasn't wide however. Built onto the side of my gauntlets were rectangular casings.

He handed it to me and copied the weapon.

'Shield acquired. Voridus Shield.'

I quickly took off my hoodie and shoved it into my bag while swapping my shirt for the long sleeve one that was in the bag, along with the armor. The metal pieces fit nicely over on me. Once I had the armor on, I put on the cloak and let it cover the armor I was wearing.

Bring out my mask I put it on over my mouth, effectively hiding the bottom half of my face. I changed my shield to the Vordis shield and was glad to feel its weight on my arm.

I thrust my fist towards the ground, and a pair of blades extended from the casings. The were long and straight, The end of each had a point towards the bottom of the blade, with the top most of the end being angled back. I gave it a few test swings.

I swung left and right, then thrust forward. Satisfied, I retracted the blade and looked at Erhard.

"How do I look?" I said holding my hands out to better show the armor.

"You look like three-hundred silvers worth."

"Heh. I guess I do." I said reaching down onto into my bag.

"Relax kid, you already paid." I lifted my bag, but it didn't feel any lighter. I opened and saw I hadn't lost any amount of coin. I looked up surprised but he grinned. "I got a feeling you'll be a pretty frequent customer." We shared a laugh, knowing full well what was in store for both of us. I quickly sorted out the rest of my gear and equipment, putting a set of potions from my bag by on my hip, a map in my right pocket, and strapping the utility knife in a holster above my left shoulder, with the hilt facing down.

Looking down at the wolves, I ran my hand over each of them. My vision was quickly blocked by a pop up alert.

'Party members added. Luna, Phobos, Deimos.'

Three other health bars showed up under mine. Next to them were there levels, all level one. In my moment of surprise, I had failed to read the second alert, and was unable to bring it back.

'Probably not important.'

I picked up the basket they were in, and turned to leave.

"Thanks man. This means a lot to me."

"Don't mention it." He turned away as well, but before he could,

"By the way," he turned around and almost didn't catch the bag of silver coins.

"Can't have my dealer going broke on me." I turned around before he could say anything, three hundred coins lighter. I took my shield, still in the Voridus form, and let it hang from my hip. Putting my hood up, I walked out into the street.

I was certainly an odd sight, and caught a few curious glances. But nobody avoided me. Nobody cowered. And nobody ran from me.

'They have no idea who I am. Perfect'

Bring out the map, I looked over it.

'Now where was it.' I asked myself, thinking back to what Myne was telling me about last night. I tried the best I could to remember it, and to my reward, found it near a what was a cliff side on the map. Putting the map back into my pocket, I left for the dungeon.

* * *

The trip between the dungeon and the city hadn't been long. Given the distance, it was really quite short. On my way, I had killed a few monsters that I had come across and was relieved to see how easily the shield cut through them. By the time I had reached the dungeon, the wolves that were with me had all reached level two while I reached level three.

When I had finally arrived, I saw the dungeon was rather lackluster. Embedded into the rock face a stone entry, with pylons flanking the tunnel. I wasn't what I expected, though this should've been it. I had let the three cubs out to walk by me a little while ago, and in that time, they had grown rather quickly. Instead of being the small, little things he had found them at first, they were now, while still very small, roughly a bit larger than my foot, instead of my palm.

It was for this reason that I took to keeping an eye on each of them. Walking into the cave with a makeshift torch I had fashioned from some wood and oil I had found on my way.

The oil was easy to make. This part of the forest had trees in that possessed a rather volatile oil in it. It was too strong to be used as cooking oil but to weak for any type of explosive of machinery. But as an ignition source, it was perfect, especially with its abundance.

Igniting the torch with a lighter I had managed to fashion from some flint and iron, I began moving through the tunnel. Not knowing what to expect, I kept the torch in my left hand and Voridus Shield on my right.

The wolves followed closely, keeping an eye out anything I missed.

'Remarkable how quickly they seem to learn.'

As I moved down the path, I came across my first cave monster. It was a large spider, about the size of a small dog. It noticed me and began scurrying at me. I didn't wait for it to jump, and rushed forward and crushed it under my boot. White blood covered the ground under my boot.

'Well that was easy.'

I picked up some of the remains and fed it to my shield.

I received a shield called the 'Spider Shield'. From what I could see, it allowed me to create a silk like fiber, as well as cling to walls with it equipped. To an extent of course.

'Spider shield, spider shield, does whatever a spider… Nothing good rhymes with shield does it?'

As I ventured further down, cobwebs began appearing along the walls. I hadn't come across any splits in the pathway, which was really quite relieving, though confusing. More spiders appeared, but they were dealt with easily.

Of a group of four that appeared, I dealt with three of them. Wondering where the fourth was, I looked at the cubs and saw them standing around it, pulling its legs and torso.

'Aw, there so cute.' That line of thinking ended rather abruptly as the wolves succeeded in ripping the spider in half by the sternum. I blinked a few times, the smile frozen on my face under the mask.

'Well… That happened.'

Small packs became more and more frequent, while the spiders themselves started becoming larger and larger. The groups coming now where in packs of six to eight. Small ones still appeared but where backed by spiders that came up to about my hip.

It wasn't a problem however. With so many coming at them, we had all gained levels rather quickly. I myself gained about six levels, moving up to level nine, while Luna and Deimos were level five, and Phobos was level seven.

He was also now the largest of the three cubs now, having taken over Luna in terms of levels not to long ago.

Now when a pack would appear, I could deal with half of them while the dogs dealt with the other half.

Bringing my boot down on another spider that had charged me, I quickly brought my shield up to block one that had jumped at. It hissed at me while trying to crawl over. I flinched and swung my shield out, cutting it with the blades on my shield. The final one had jumped at me with my shield still out. It was caught in mid air by a blur of grey fur.

Looking at my furry savior, I saw Deimos holding the spider in his mouth. He bit down with enough force to cut the spider in half. I brought my shield up again, waiting for the brutes to charge.

Two of them began to move forward, heading straight towards me. I changed to my dueling shield and charged as well. I bashed the first brute, knocking it back a bit. I shifted my shield and cut upward, before bringing my shield down for one final blow. The second one went to get me while I was vulnerable but it Phobos who stopped it.

He jumped it's head and began biting down on it's eyes. The brute clicked and screeched in pain, now blinded by either a lack of eyes or blood in them. Phobos jumped off letting me strike. I cut up with my shield and then brought it down.

Taking a closer look, I could see the fur on his face was now stained white with the blood of all the spiders he had been killing. I noticed a while ago, but now it appeared to be a permanent color on his fur.

Looking back at the pathway, I came to another break in the pathway. Walking over to one of the spiders, I picked up the body. I put some of the blood on hand and began drawing an arrow on the ground to help myself when leaving.

Dropping the spider body into my shield, I managed to advance my spider shield to a higher level. Reading the abilities chart, I could now fling webs as opposed to just spinning them. I summoned the shield, now curious about what it looked like.

The shield resembled a spider, with the main abdomen making up the majority of the shield. The rear four legs moved back and surrounded the abdomen at angles, while the front four surrounded the head, giving the shield more of a kite shape. The very front edge came into the head, where a pair of fangs jutted out from the indention.

I aimed at a wall and tried to fire a ball of web at the wall but nothing happened. I thought for a second and extended my pinky and index finger, while bringing my middle and ring finger back to my wrist and flicked my wrist.

Nothing happened.

'I really should've saw that one coming.'

I scratched the back of my head, trying to figure out what to do. I focused and let instructed the shield to make a ball of spider silk. A strange liquid egan to secrete from my fingers that came together and began forming the silk. With a quick check, I found my other hand could do it as well with the shield equipped.

I brought my hands together and began twisting the silk between them, not quite sure of what I'll get. When I pulled them apart, I had succeeded in mending the silk together into a fabric. It wasn't pretty, multiple holes, large clumpings, and was more attuned to sand paper.

I dropped the fabric, seeing it really had no value to it, and began trying out other abilities the shield granted.

Walking over to the wall, I put my hands and feet on it and pulled myself up. I stuck to the wall without trouble, ecstatic at the possibilities. I went to climb further up but realized a small problem that I had not anticipated.

My hands were stuck.

I pulled against the wall, but my hands wouldn't budge. I kept pulling harder and harder but nothing seemed to work.

Trying something else, I moved my feet up to be between me and the wall and began pushing. I heard something crack and I immediately fell on my back with a thud, knocking the air out of me. I brought my hand up so I could see it, and realized that my fingers didn't stop sticking, but part of rock face broke off and was now stuck to my hand. I let my hand fall to my side in exasperation.

My view of the ceiling was blocked when Phobos walked up from behind me and looked down at me. We stared at each other before he licked my nose and started walking further down into the caves.

'If it wasn't already a long day today, it certainly is now.'

Getting up, I dropped the shield, letting the pieces fall and picked up the torch that I had laid on the ground and followed the other wolves down, moving back up to take point.

* * *

'I know this is supposed to be a beginner dungeon,' I thought as I stared at something rather peculiar. 'But I don't think this is beginner level.'

In front of me was a wall of webs. It was so thick that I could see threw it, save for a faint few glows and the sound of rushing water, and so strong that even a few strikes from Voridus didn't do anything. A few skeletons lay near it, leaving me to wonder just what could've been their end.

'Well, nothing ventured,' I said moving my torch near the webs. 'Nothing gained.'

The webs went ablaze immediately. Slowly but surely, they began to burn away, giving me a better view of what was behind the webs. I stood back with the wolves incase a mob of spiders was behind it, waiting to swarm us, but after the flame died down, nothing came out.

We slowly moved into the room, expecting something to come out of the many webs. But as we entered we stopped. Everywhere around the cave, light blue crystal decorated the walls and ceiling. Looking up, I could see multiple levels to the cave. From the highest one, a river of water ended, creating a beautiful waterfall.

'Damn, this place is gorgeous.' Walking over to one of the crystals, I kneeled down and examined it. From what I could see, it was some sort of ore.

'I really wish I had a pickaxe right now.' Looking back at my shield, I thought I'd try something and summoned my tower shield. Forgetting how heavy it was, I wasn't prepared for the added weight, and the shield dropped with a thud.

I picked it back up and moved to one of the crystal deposits that were close to the entrance. I placed both hands on the shield and bashed the crystal. To my glee, it broke apart under the weight.

'At least physics work like they should here. I wonder if that translates for combat mechanics as well?'

It wouldn't be as easy as if I simply had a pickax, as now I would have to pick up the ore as large shards instead of chunks. I set down my own bag near the entry and continued bashing the crystal and putting it into a second bag that I slung over my shoulder. It was larger than my personal backpack but not as secure, so when I would finish, I figured I could just through by exit of the cavern and pick it back up on my way back out.

After harvesting so many of the crystals, I was starting to become fatigued rather quickly. I started walking over to another large crystal, realizing early on that it produced larger shards that were easier to handle, and prepared to bash it with my shield. I brought my shield up but stopped when I heard growling. Looking over, I saw the three wolves, who were now the same size as a full grown German Shepherd, staring at something down one of the tunnels.

I set my bag down by the entrance, having not moved very far with so many crystal deposits nearby, and walked up to the wolves. I swapped back to my Voridis Shield, readying myself for a wave of spiders.

What I hadn't expected was four spiders to come storming out, each one coming up to just below my shoulder, and armored with hard chitin plating. I quickly swapped to my dueling shield for it's longer reach.

I charged forward, swinging my shield up, leaving a deep cut across the spider's head. It tried to push forward, but I dodged to the left and implanted my shield into its side, wounding it, but not killing it. Moving my hand to the back of the bar, I jumped back, pulling out my shield, to avoid a bite from the second.

I continued to back pedal, putting some distance between myself and the spiders. I spared a glance over at the third spider being taken down by the wolves. Deimos and Phobos were holding its legs, keeping it anchored down. Luna had charged forward at the spider. It went to bite but she dodged to the side, using the lowered head to climb onto its back and started digging through the chitin plating of the spiders neck. Deimos and Phobos, seeing an opportunity, jumped on as well and began ripping into the head and abdomen.

Focussing back on the other two, a thought crossed my mind. 'Where's the fourth one.'

Looking behind the spiders, I saw it scurrying back into the dark tunnel. Refocusing on the other two in front of me, they charged me. I swapped to my tower shield and used it as a blunt object, swinging wide and knocking one of the arachnids to the side, knocking it off balance and into the other. Not wasting the opportunity, I charged towards them and brought the full weight of my shield down on the spiders head, turning it to white mush. The second charged but I twisted my shield and caught its maw before it could bite me.

I moved its head up and I went under the spider. With a warcry I didn't I could make, I pushed my shield up over my head, forcing the spider into the air and onto its back. I brought my boot down on it as well, letting a crack resonate throughout the cave as it's plating caved in. It wasn't as much damage as the tower shield, but it certainly did the job.

'Damn I'm strong now!'

Looking over at the cubs, now wolves, I could see the body of the spider they had fought with large chunks of flesh and limbs missing.

'I was brutal but at least I was quick. That just looks like torture.'

Leaving thoughts as to what kind of little monsters I had raised over the course of the day, I focused on the cave that the fourth spider had scurried down. I couldn't see anything but the amount of cobwebs by the mouth of the entrance alone gave away what it was. I was about to venture further in but a heavy thumping stopped me.

It was slow and almost antagonizing, with each thump louder than the last. I brought up my tower shield, with wolves falling in at my sides. Deimos was at my left while Luna and Phobos at my right. It was now I realized how big they were, coming up to above my knee. A far cry from just earlier today.

The noise stopped. I couldn't make out what was in the shadow, but I could see slight movement if I concentrated. Twisting the torch in my hand, I brought it back and threw it into the cobwebs.

We started backing away.

As it hit the ground, the fire illuminated the underside of something massive. As the fire spread out on the web, I could make out more details. Soon legs gave shape. Than the underside became distinuished. Than the bottom stingers of its mandibles. It's red eyes were a stark contrast to the black on the shadow that shrouded the top half of it.

It stood almost twice my height, unflinching in the flame. It only stared at us, clicking its mandibles as if it were debating what to do with us. And in one motion those thoughts concluded.

It let out a bone chilling screech, opening its mandibles to give a clear view of the rows of teeth and claws within its mouth. At the top of my vision, a purple bar appeared with the words 'Dimensional Spider Queen'.

'The hell kinda spider is that!? And since when did they have queens!?'

I didn't get a chance to think anymore as it charged forward. It brought up one of pylons of chitin and flesh that was its leg with the intent to impale us. The wolves scattered while I brought my tower shield above me. It hit the shield and I almost buckled under the force. I opened my eyes, having closed them when the leg came down, and was met with a second one coming at me from the side.

It struck me and sent me tumbling to the side. I rolled on the round until I hit a boulder near the side of the cave.

Grunting, I got up, changing back to my default shield to relieve myself of the weight. I stood there for a second, watching as the wolves weaved in between the legs. It was there I noticed something in its movements. Everytime one of them would get under the spider, it would move to keep them to its front or side.

'It doesn't want them under it… It can't hit them there… That's where it's weak point is!'

I changed to my Voridus shield and charged the spider. It went to bring its leg down on me again but instead of blocking, I dodged to the right. As I ran by one of its legs, I embedded the blades on my shield into the leg and wit a twist of my arm and body around the leg, I dismembered the limb.

The spider screeched and tried to move in a way to put back in front of it, but I stayed under it, striking at its underside in an attempt to bleed it of its energy.

That was a mistake.

As the dark green blood poured out from the underside, it got onto my arm and melted through my armor. Whatever amount that wasn't spent burning the leather made it to my skin. I fought the urge to cry out in pain and ran out from the back of the spider.

A quick examination showed that the blood had only gotten on that part of myself, but left the top of my forearm dark red and black. Looking back, I could see the blood pouring out onto the floor, melting away the stone under it.

It's movements had slowed with the loss of one of its limbs and so much blood, but it wasn't enough. Thinking of something stupid, I pulled out some of the oil I had used to make the torch.

I prepared extra, thinking I would need to reapply, but didn't realize it's effectiveness and was left with quite a lot of extra. Uncapping the bottle, I charged the rear of the spider.

I jumped and managed to grip a lowered part of its back. I began to clamber up, using what ever I could get a hold of to stay on. The spider thrashed around violently, trying to shake me off its back. I had managed to find a spot where its back began to flatten out, and embedded the blade of my shield into the carapace armor. The spider began thrashing around even more, trying to knock me off of itself, but my shield held strong and kept me on its back.

I began pouring whatever oil I had out onto the spiders back, getting it over every inch I could, with no small amount getting on myself. Before I had finished pouring out the last bottle, the spider angled itself and gave a powerful twist, flinging me off its back. Looking back at it, I could see the oil had covered everything from it's abdomen to its eyes.

I smiled but realized a grave flaw in my plan.

I had already thrown my torch into cobwebs, and trying to light it with my flint would be suicidal.

Swearing under my breath, I tried desperately to think of a plan. I looked up at the stalagmites in the cave, one came to mind. I brought up me list of shields and skimmed through, hoping to find any better solution. I didn't and resolved myself.

Summoning my spider shield, I began threw a ball after ball of spider silk at the spider. Most of my throws went lopsided and missed, but a few met their mark and hit the spider's eyes, blinding it.

"Hey! Over here you big green bastard!" I yelled trying to lure it towards me. I changed to my rope shield and aimed for one of the larger stalagmites above me. I winded up the rope, pulling myself up while the wolves did their best to keep the queen directly under me. I gripped it for dear life, realizing that the piece of rock was almost as long as the behemoth below me.

I changed to my spider shield, sticking to the rock through my hands and boots. Looking below, I could see the spider was just below me, trying its best to listen to the wolves and strike for where they were. I began bashing the stalagmite with my shield, trying to break it.

As I did, it began to shutter and cracks formed around where I was striking it. Looking down, the spider was still confused and began to turn and twist, hearing my strikes on the stone, but not knowing where it was coming from.

The rock broke and I began falling with it. The spider, realizing what was happening, tried to move out of the way of the rock. Pushing off the rock, I rolled onto the ground trying to get away from beast best I could. I couldn't see what was happening, but the violent shrieking told me all I needed to hear.

Getting up, I realized I had broken one of the my ribs and dislocated my shoulder in the landing. Holding my broken rib with my non dislocated arm, I walked towards the spider. It was still struggling under the massive rock that had impaled its back, but it was clear it wasn't going to live much longer.

I walked towards the head, its legs not even coming close to me. I called upon my Voridus shield and thrust the blade into the spiders forehead, draining it of what little life it had left. Pulling out my blade, I stood there wondering what to do next.

'This thing must've been one of the mini bosses from the first wave. Probably hid in here thinking it could emerge when the second hit.'

My wolves had taken a beating as well, with cuts and bruises under their blood stained fur. I began walking away from the spider until something caught my eye. Looking into the dark tunnel the spider came from, something was shining within it.

Walking over to it, I followed a clear path where the cobwebs had been burned away, exposing stone work underneath it. Following closely to it, I came across a small pedestal with a crystal in it. Next to it was a chest and a bench.

Picking up the crystal, my status went to work, giving me information as to what it was. It was some sort of rare artifact called an Elders Prism, but past that I couldn't garner anything else. Trying something, I fed it to my shield and was rewarded with something I had never known about.

'Light Shield unlocked'

'Heritage series unlocked. Prisma Shield unlocked'

I had already known about the light shield. The shape was the same silver metal but was shaped like a square. Its ability was to create a small barrier of light that could guard the user. The Prisma Shield however, I had never heard of.

Summoning the new shield, I immediately noticed was how similar it was to the light shield. It was a perfect square as well but the metal was darker and came up more, with the strange prism at the center above the green crystal that was clear with all my other shields.

Focusing on the crystal, I could feel a slight drain of something from me but as soon as I did, the prism separate and began glowing. It wasn't terribly bright but it was enough to illuminate the cave. Looking behind me, I could see that the fourth spider was now a charred husk, not far from where the cobwebs had ended. With a more clear view, I could see that the webs ended after a certain point but were incredibly wet, keeping the fire from spreading further.

Turning to the chest, I opened it and was surprised by its contents. In it was an old suit of armor, unlike anything I had ever seen. The legs were heavy, angled pieces of armor, covering every inch. The armor around the thighs were fully covered and seemed to have pouched along it.

Hanging from the hip was a sort of metal kilt. The front and back looked like geometric plates connected one of top of each other as it went down. It the same for the back. On the sides were solid plates, but done with a curve for better coverage. The front of the chest piece was similar to the front kilt but the plates weren't as long and better covered my whole chest.

The back mimicked the front but went along with the curve of the spine. The sides of the chest where layered plates that ran between the front to parts. The arms and shoulders where as angular as well. The arms were similar to the legs but not as heavy to make weapon usage easier. Plates around the shoulders weren't as eye catching as the rest of of the armor, but the smaller size allowed for more movement in the shoulders.

The armor was no doubt a powerful when first created but time had taken its toll and now much of the metal had been rusted and made fragile. Whole sections, including the helmet, had been turned into red powder. Looking in the corner, I could see a bad a few bags with unknown contents.

I brought out the bags and set them on the table, noticing a book on it. Opening the bag, I found a myriad of potions. Some of the bottles were cracked and completely empty but some had remained intact. Bringing one out, I set it on the table and opened the book next to it.

To my surprise, I immediately recognized its contents.

The writing was English.

Looking back at the chest with the armor with newfound fascination, I began looking threw the book. In it was nothing I hadn't done myself. Drawings. Design upon design of armor, mechanization, chemicals theories, including chemical equations of elements. Many of them had been made illegible or blurs from what he assumed was water damage, but those that survived were impressive to say the least. Whoever owned this had to be centuries, if not millenia ahead of this world in scientific understanding.

Flipping to the back, I managed to find a name. Everything I've done thus far couldn't have prepared me for this.

'Johnson. The Hero of the Shield.'

I was baffled. These were the works of the previous Shield Hero. Looking back at the armor, I realized that must've been his armor. I knew that I wasn't the first Shield Hero. If I remember, the Filolial queen, Fitoria was raised by the first Shield Hero and was effectively immortal. But to see the works of another.

'I'll have to ask her when I get to that point.'

Looking at the note, most of it was damaged and blurred out but I could still garner some information from it.

'...-write this journal as one of my-… -left with my prototype arm-... Within this is world are four other-... for each of the hero-... The crystal in thi-... -a key for the vaults I ha-... I write thi… tunnel will only show to my-... -hers will show themsel-... As a final no-... I want the apol-... know that I did wro-... -y dear, Yu-.. ro of the sp-...'

The rest of the paragraph was damaged beyond repair. But it was enough to speculate.

'Prototype… Then this must have only been a work in progress. I guess the real thing is in one of the Vaults that are mentioned. One for each hero maybe? That would explain what this "Elder Crystal" is for. But what is this last part. Was he in a relationship with one of the other heroes? I suppose they must've engaged if the context is anything to go by, but which hero… Maybe the spear? It's the only one that fits… Guess things were different then.'

Looking for information about the potions, I found something that talked about how they were a sort of cream that could seal wounds. I picked out of the bottles and let out some of the gel onto my fingers and rubbed it on my arm. I hissed when the gel started steaming, but the pain quickly subsided save for a small burning feeling.

Using my spider shield, I weaved some spider silk into bandages and wrapped up my wounded arm. I drank one of the potions that was in there as well and flinched at the sound of my bones moving and repairing themselves. Sitting down in a chair near the desk, now utterly exhausted, I started thinking about what I had just found.

'Why… Why are things so different? This wasn't supposed to happen-no. This never even existed to begin with. Was it even in the original timeline? No, he never went into the tunnel. He never got an offensive shield this early. He never had a pack with him until later.' Looking to his side, he saw the wolves had gathered together and were now resting. He must've missed them when going through the book and chest.

'Maybe this was part of the original timeline and it just never played into it? No… Unlikely anyway. Well… Either way… Best use it.'

Realizing how tired I was, I stood up from the chair and laid down near the wolves. Having gone almost two days without sleep wasn't appearing to be the best idea anymore. Using my bag as a pillow, I dozed off, letting the wolves crowd around me.

'They'll wake me up if something happens.'

In my drowsiness, I failed to notice an alert that appeared in my vision.

'Requirements met. Bestial Ascension acquired.'

'Applying.'


	4. Dog's and Demi's

Chapter 4, Dogs to Demi's

There were many things I realized. The first thing was how complicated this new world was compared to what I had thought it would be. The second is stone is not a comfortable sleeping surface. The third was lack of sleep can greatly reduce how much someone cares. Shifting on the rock surface to try and get more comfortable, I ended up moving one of the weights that were on my leg.

"Hmm. Don't move… Still tired." Said a feminine voice.

"Sure." I said idly before getting comfortable again. I was about to fall asleep again but realized something.

Wolves don't talk.

My eyes widened but I didn't move. I looked to where the voice came from but was met a head full of silvery grey hair. I looked to my left and found two others, but their hair was shorter and darker. The lighter of the two had a white tuff on the front.

I looked closer and realized something else.

They had no clothes on.

I immediately stood up trying to figure out what had happened.

'Yesterday, I think, I fought a giant spider, found out the Shield Hero before me was a genius, passed out, and here I am now.'

"You good Alpha? You look… Uneasy..."

Looking up, I saw the faces of two of the people. They were both males with pale skin and grey hair. From what he could see, they were about my age if only a tad younger. One of them was sitting down but was clearly quite tall and was more muscular than the other. The second person had the white streak through their hair but was shorter and not as muscular. They both had a wolf tail and ears on them. I thought about it for a second and realized something.

"Phobos? Deimos? That you two?"

"Yep." The one with the white streak said.

"Who else?" The larger of the two said. But something else clicked.

"Wait… Where's Luna."

"Right here Alpha." I was about to turn around to look but stopped, realizing what her state of dress would be.

'Don't. You. Dare.'

I pulled my bag in front of me and began digging my bag. To my luck, I managed to find a few spare sets of clothes that Erhard had packed into my bag.

'You are a lifesaver, Erhard.' I quickly through the clothes to Phobos and Deimos, telling them to put them on. Not sure what to do, I turned my body and held out the clothes to Luna, but didn't look in her direction.

"Luna. Put these on please."

"Why? I'm always naked when I'm a wolf."

'Goddammit.'

"Luna, just… put them on." I couldn't see her take them but I did feel the clothes leave my hand. I looked at the other two and noticed something. "Hey, what'd y'all do with your collars."

"They didn't quite fit anymore, so we put them on our wrist." Deimos said, holding up his wrist.

'Wait, did they change in the middle of the night… wake up… take off the collar… put it on their wrist… and go back to sleep!?'

"And you weren't at all, you know, surprised that your not wolves anyway!?"

"Not really."

I sighed, not sure how to take that answer.

A minute passed before I turned around to face her.

Looking at her, it was clear she was related to the other two. She had the same hair and skin color as Phobos or Deimos but was far shorter. She had a wolf's tail and ears like the other two as well. I couldn't see much more as everything else was covered by the shirt and pants I had handed her, but her arms were fairly well toned.

The second thing I noticed was how tight her shirt was but I looked away when I realized I was staring. Looking back at the other two, I noticed they were all wearing similar clothes.

Their shirt was a simple khaki colored shirt with a string running between the sides of the collar and darker colored pants. They didn't have any shoes on, which was something I would need to rectify. Looking back at their levels, I could see that killing the boss and flooded our experience. I had jumped straight to level twenty-two. Phobos was at level twenty one, and Deimos and Luna were both at level nineteen.

'No wonder they've grown so much. Since their monsters, flooding their experience must've shot them straight into adulthood. Now, what was it that let them transform?' Looking through my shields, I found one that I had looked over earlier. The Monster Tamer shield. Reading through it, I found that monsters under my command would gain more experience but a second ability had been added to it labeled as the 'Bestial Ascension'.

The description explained that it was part of the Heritage Series, saying that past wielders had the ability to take monsters and gift them with great powers, including the ability to turn into a human or demi-human form. I had apparently gained this when I found Johnson's writings and forged a bond with my wolves.

'Alright, so it's an ability that I was given that ties in with my Monster Tamer Shield… When did I get the monster tamer shield...? Probably was that second alert from yesterday.'

"Alpha, you're doing the thing again." Luna said. Looking up I realized I had been staring at the ground in thought.

"Sorry. Just trying to figure out everything." Looking at the Spider Queen, I walked over and used my Voridus Shield to cut part of spider off. Feeding it to my shield, I was given quite a bit of information about it, as well as an advancement for my spider shield. To summarize, the leather was incredibly strong compared to regular leather, matching the strength of some metals, as well as incredibly resistant to any form of acid and deterioration.

Looking at the others, I called them over.

'Well, there human, or demi-human I guess, best get em to help me out with this.'

"Alright, I need two of you three to start taking apart this spider, and the other to help handle the leather. The leather is really durable so I plan on using it to give your human forms some better protection. Who's up for it?" I asked, holding out my utility knife.

Phobos walked up and took the knife. "On it." Deimos followed behind him.

"What about me?" Asked Luna.

"I need you to come help me collect whatever was in that cache. The armor, potions, notes, everything." We walked over and began packing the loot into other bags that were inside the chest. The armor went into a specialized bag that was under it, while the potions and, after taking out the empty and broken bottles, went back into their bag.

We managed to find a few other bags and planned to put the spider leather in those. I picked up the book and placed it into the pouch behind my hip.

By the end of it, we had about three bags of rolls of spider leather, and one for the ore, the armor, and potions each. Seeing that it wasn't that many, I put the potions in my own bag. Before leaving, I cut some leather from the spider myself and fashioned some shoes for my three companions.

'Not bad if I might say, not bad at all.' I thought, looking over the haul. I had picked up a bag of leather in addition to my own. Phobos, being the largest, picked up the bag of ore, Deimos handled the two remaining bags of leather, while Luna handled the armor.

Before we left I walked over the corpse and checked to see if there was any oil left on it. To my luck, there was and I brought out my lighter. I had remembered that monsters like these released deadly pathogens when they decayed. I didn't want to chance Ren's mistake with the dragon corpse and decided to burn the remains. With a few sparks, the oil caught and the body was quickly engulfed by the flames.

I turned around and nodded to the wolves. We made our way through the labyrinth of tunnels, thankful for the arrows I had left behind. I used the Prisma Shield so we could all see where we were going as we moved through the otherwise pitch-black walkways. We didn't encounter any mobs on our way out, which didn't surprise any of us.

Once we made it to the surface, we all took a collective breath of fresh air. The sun was now rising, leaving a glistening view of the forest that was much preferred to the dark and dreary tunnels on the spider cave. We hiked through the forest until we found a path that led us back to the city. I skimmed through the journal during our walk, trying to gather as much information as I could from it, but stopping at parts that caught my eye. The walk went by quickly for me, and soon we were entering in through the gates of the city, finding our way back to Erhard's shop. I kept my mask and hood on ever since we left the cave to keep from being found out.

As we walked in, I took my mask and hood off but didn't see Erhard at the counter. We did, however, hear some commotion in the back. I walked over to a door behind the counter and peeked my head in. There I found him, working on a sword, humming a tune I didn't recognize.

"Hey man." Erhard stopped what he was doing and looked up at me. He smiled.

"Back Already? It's only been a day."

"Well, let's just say, we happened to make a few little discoveries of our own."

He raised an eyebrow. "We?"

I laughed nervously. "HeHeeee. You might wanna finish up your sword before coming up front. You probably won't be able to get anything else done after hearing this."

He blinked a few times but went back to hammering the sword.

I walked back out to the main room and found the other three lounging around on whatever they could find. I joined them, taking a seat on the floor and leaning on the counter. It didn't take long for the sound of metal banging together to stop and Erhard to walk out.

When he saw the others, he immediately asked who they were.

"Really Uncle? You don't remember us?" Luna asked with a pout.

"Kid, I've ever seen you in my life." Erhard responded, eliciting a grumble from Luna. In a puff of smoke, she transformed into her wolf form. The sudden change caused Erhard to jump but realize who the girl in front was.

I, on the other hand, face palmed at the fact that she had just ripped the pair of clothes she had on to shreds. What caught me off guard was that, as a wolf, she stood taller than Erhard and quickly made what was a rather spacious room very claustrophobic.

'When did they even!-You know what, I don't even care anymore.'

"Luna!? Is that you!?" Erhard yelled.

"Hey, don't forget about us." Deimos butted in. Erhard looked at them slack-jawed than back to me.

"Trust me, man, there are far worse ways to have this dumped on you." As I had learned this morning. "Also, I have another job for you. I need you to make some leather armor using the spider leather we got from the dungeon. But there was something else we found as well."

Bringing his attention to me, I picked up the bag that Luna had put down before transforming and laid the armor out on the table. "Do you know what this is?"

Erhard was about to say something but started looking at the armor more. He began to pick at parts that hadn't rushed away and looked over the mechanisms within them.

"At first I thought this was just junk but… this is advanced whatever it is."

"This is a prototype armor, designed by the previous Shield Hero." Erhard almost dropped the plating right there.

"The previous Shield Hero? That had to be centuries ago at the least."

"Well, hero or not, he certainly wasn't from this world." I said, bring out his journal. "This is his journal, or one of them anyway. The first thing is that it's written in English, a language from my old world. And even if it wasn't, it's filled with all sorts of mechanisms and designs that your world shouldn't even be close to imagining, let alone designing. One system design I saw this journal describe was using magic as a means of mass-energy conversion to power… Whatever he had planned, with the conversion equations. Ideas like that that are beyond experimental, even by the standards of my world. This shouldn't exist here for another two, maybe three millennia at least."

"Yet it was written some centuries ago." Erhard said, filling in the blank. "What else does it say?"

"Says the armor was a prototype of his own creation. Some other drawings and designs are here but a lot of it is deteriorated and can't be recovered. But from what else I could get from this was there are these vaults he created. What's in them, I don't know. From what I could tell though, they're basically gold mines for anyone lucky enough to open them. Inventions, constructs, weapons, armors, advanced machinery, maybe even a completed version of the armor we found. If they still exist, that's where they'll be.

"But to unlock, you need an Elder Prism. It acts as a key for the vaults. Now, from what I could tell, one of them was destroyed before he sealed away this journal, I've already reclaimed one of them. Assuming ne for each hero and a lack fabrication methods, that leaves two left. I don't know where they are, but from what I could tell, they're all cut from the same crystal, and serve the same function."

"And what do you want me to do? I mean, I'm flattered you're telling me all this but what exactly do you have in mind for me?"

"And this is where you come in. As much as I want to pick these findings for all their worth, I still have to get stronger for the waves, as well as collect funding since I won't be receiving any from the King. I'll need your help in making progress where I won't be able to. I need you to reverse engineer the armor we found. It's rusted to hell but with it and whatever schematics are left in the journal, we might be able to redraw its design into a new armor pattern. Maybe even construct a set just like it. Meanwhile, I'll handle journal entries and vault locations."

"And what do you plan to do with the armor? I know it's powerful and will be a boon in fighting the waves, but you sound like your planning to build it in a months time."

"Apparently monsters from the waves are attracted to what the crystal prism is made of. They act almost like a beacon until reclaimed by the heroes. The monster we found stalking this one was a mini-boss from the first wave. Damn things blood was so acidic it melted off some of my armor and burned my skin." I said, showing him my bandaged arm. "The longer we wait, the higher the chance there'll be more, stronger monsters guarding the prisms. Problem is, we can't rush out to try and take them, lest we want to sing our own death song while we're at it. We got lucky with this one, that won't happen again.

"I want to recreate the prototype armor, and a few more like it, so we can deal with the monsters easier around the vaults. I may be able to find the vaults, but actually securing them is another matter entirely. There are some advanced weapon designs in here that I want to try and recreate as well but they aren't complete so I won't know what we need until I can recover the rest of blueprints."

He stroked his beard in thought. "So let me get this straight. You want to take designs from the previous Shield Hero that you believe is from another technologically advanced world like your own, reconstruct his designs to then use them to find the builds and designs that you believe are even stronger, along with technology that this world hasn't seen the likes of."

"Yes." I replied without hesitation.

He sighed and put his hand behind his head. "Ya' know. I'm not sure what I expected from you, but this certainly isn't it."

"But you'll still help, right?"

He grinned. "No question about that. I just hope I get compensated properly for it."

"Trust me, man. If it's money, this book alone would make you and I a fortune alone. But I plan to do so much more with it."

"You and I?"

"Welcome to economics, my friends. I supply you with designs, and in return, you pay me a small portion of the profit for the armors that use the designs I provided for a set time length. Besides," I said holding up the book. "You think this is the only place where good ideas come from. You are talking to a man who's devoted to research and development. I did this stuff for fun when I wasn't doing it for work."

"Wow. Alpha's super smart." Luna said, still in her wolf form. I grew a bit red and laughed, not use to hearing those kinds of compliments said out loud.

Erhard laughed at my enthusiasm and embarrassment. "Alright kid. I'll go with along with this. Now," he said clapping his hands. "What do you need today."

"I need that leather armor I told you about earlier, but before you make it, I gotta know. Is it possible to combine it with transforming clothes?"

* * *

My group walked down the city street, heading for the local witch to get some magic thread made for the tailor. Erhard was kind enough to give us another set of clothes to replace the ones Luna ripped for free. He said it was compensated for with the additional leather we had brought for him. He was also kind enough to take the sacks with a string that I called shoes off our hands and replace them with real leather boots.

He gave us the leather armor, now fitted to each one of the wolves, along with some extra material and told us to take them to the witch to get them infused with magic for the transforming clothes, along with magic thread.

Heading in, we were greeted with a rather short lady on the older side with a dark cloak and hat. Her light brown and curly hair was mostly under her hat but came down just below her shoulders.

"Ah, if it isn't the Shield Hero." She said. I went wide-eyed and tensed up. "Relax child. Erhard and I talk from time to time and he made it clear to me what really happened. Please, you are quite welcome here."

I relaxed and took off my hood, but left my mask on. "Thank you, mam. It's a relief to know of another person I can trust in this city."

"No thanks needed. Now, what can I do for you?"

"I need some magic thread made for these three, along with an infusion on some leather armor. Can you do that for me?"

"Certainly. If you could come this way, I can show you my spinning wheel."

'Good. It's not broken yet.'

It took the better part of an hour, but we managed to get the magic thread and leather we needed. From there we went to the tailor to get the thread weaved into that Erhard would then attach the leather too. The cost of it was about seventy-five silvers each. It would've put a deeper hole in my pocket if not for Erhard paying us handsomely for the spider leather.

Overall, I still had about four hundred silvers left. Not a bad place to be at the moment.

We were about to head back Erhard's until a symphony of growls erupted from everyone. Having gone so long without food hadn't been the best idea. We decided to drop by one of the restaurants for some lunch. I noticed the sign and remembered it read something about not serving demi-humans, but I had a way of convincing the staff.

Walking in, we earned a few glares from the people but none of us paid them any mind. Sitting down, we waited for one of the waiters to come over. Eventually, one did but seemed to have something else in mind.

"Excuse me, sir but there is a sign outside for a reason." The man said.

Too hungry to deal with this, I got up and stood right in front of him. With the additional levels we had acquired, the wolves weren't the only ones who had grown. My height and muscle mass had grown at a pace that would've been unreal in m old world, even with the use of the most powerful drugs and enhancements. It was nowhere near the triplets rate of growth, but it was a huge jump nonetheless.

Comparatively, I was almost a foot and a half taller than the person in front of me, though the fact he was a bit below average height, to begin with, helped with that difference. I leaned down a bit and lowered my voice, though only slightly.

"Is there a problem?" I asked, not noticing my eyes flare up a bit, adding to the intimidation.

And intimidated he was. He quickly shook his head and brought out a pad of paper and a pencil. "Not at all, sir." He said with a shaky voice. "Now what will you be ordering today?"

"We'll take four of the cheapest meals." I said, dropping the intimidation act. I glanced back at the three and looked back at the waiter. "Along with a plate of beef and drinks." I added.

"Yes, sir." He said, hastily moving back to the what I assumed was the kitchen with a few light coughs. I sat back down, waiting for him to return with our food. We began to talk to each other.

"Hey, Alpha," Deimos started, "why do you keep your face hidden?"

I looked over my shoulder to make sure no one had heard him. "You don't know…? Right, you three only cubs yesterday. Well, I can't go into detail here, but let's say I was betrayed and keep it at that for now."

The wolves' looks souered at hearing this, their pact instincts instantly flaring up. They hadn't known much about the event but simply hearing it had happened left a bad taste in their mouth. Our food arrived and I undid the plate on my mask, but kept my hood up and strap on. We ate in relative silence, everyone being too hungry to talk.

To both my relief and dismay, they ate with the utensils, though with limited mannerisms. I sighed at seeing Luna, the smallest and sweetest of the three, nearly consume an entire strip of beef in one bite.

I began eating my own food but stopped mid-bite upon realizing something. Luna, having sat opposite of me, noticed my pause.

'Forgot about this part.'

"Are you alright Alpha? Does the food not taste good?"

I and swallowed and sighed, "Nope, can't taste anything." I said as I continued to eat. It wasn't enjoyable with the food feeling similar to flavorless mush in my mouth, but I was too hungry to care. We finished eating and paid for our meals, some twenty-five coppers total.

I put my plate back on and made sure the others were ready to leave as well. We left the restaurant, heading straight to tailor's shop. The walk had been uneventful, thankfully, though some of the vendors and shop owners had given us some free food on the account of Luna being with us.

'Well… For a county that supports human supremacy, it really is full of Lolicons… How does that work?' I continued to turn through my thoughts, trying to figure out how this made sense and didn't realize that we had made it to the shop until Luna had shaken me from my internal debating.

We walked in and was greeted by an energetic lady. She had a pink shirt and khaki shorts under her leather apron. She had a pair of glasses under her blonde hair, tied up into a bun. I was caught off guard when she practically jumped on Luna and started talking about how cute she was.

Luna just stood there, unsure of what to do.

"Excuse me, ma'am." I said. Before I knew it, she was inches from my face with a disappointed look.

"Are you the one who dressed this fine lady in these rags?"

'They aren't really rags, and it's a bit more complex than that but…'

"Technically…?"

She hummed in disappointment. She backed up, talking to herself. "And what is your relationship to the lady? Father? Brother? Boyfriend?"

I spoke up. "I am none of those."

"Then what is it?"

"Companion. Now if we could."

"Hmm. Alright, now what would you like?"

"I need two sets of clothes for each of these three. One for simply wearing but the other for armor. Can you do that for me?"

Her disappointment was immediately replaced by ecstasy. "Certainly!" She grabbed Luna and the materials and dragged her into the back. "I'll handle those two next!" She yelled from the back.

The remainders of us simply looked at each other and shrugged. We would've sat down in peace if she hadn't spoken up again from the back.

"Why does she not have any undergarments!?"

I face palmed. 'There are way too many things to keep track of.'

We had gotten comfortable, finding places to sit down around the shop. It had taken some time, but eventually, the tailor had finally walked back out with Luna in tow. She was wearing a set of clothes that were made for her and holding what I assumed was the leather plating. The tailor was holding two more sets of clothes as well, along with three bags, which had me curious.

Luna's clothing was a pair of black, form-fitting, pants and a light tan jacket that came down to about her mid thigh. On her feet were a pair of leather boots that came up to the knees. I assumed it was but it appeared as a wrap of cloth and looked more like a large bandana to me. Her tail stuck out of a cut in the back of her jacket.

The tailor began fanning over how cute Luna looked, even in such a work based attire. The rest of us could only watch in confusion. She turned back to us and handed the clothes and armor she was holding.

"Um, when did you make these?" I asked, examining the clothes she had brought out for Phobos and Deimos. The two moved back to the changing rooms to put the clothes one.

"Oh, those? I made those while I was working on clothes for the lady."

"And you decided it necessary to bring back Luna for fitting but threw together the fabrics for the other two?" I asked, genuinely confused.

She waved her hand. "Those two are easy. They don't really care how they look and the clothes would need to be baggy anyhow. I wanted to take special care with hers." Truth to her words, when Phobos and Deimos walked out, their clothes were perfect for them.

Deimos and Phobos both wore a darker set of clothes, though Phobos' was a bit lighter. Their shirts were plain but their jackets were a bit baggier than Luna's was. They both came down to about their knees but while Phobos' was solid, except for a slit down the back for his tail, Deimos' consisted of four individual strands that overlapped each other.

They both wore a pair of leather boots and a belt. Under their jackets were long black, long sleeve shirts similar to mine. Around both their necks were wraps of cloth similar to Luna's.

She handed us the bags, saying they were built with the special leather and cloth to transform along with their clothes. Deimos and Phobos' were both the largest, being two large sacks divided into a top and bottom bag, while Luna's was made of two smaller travel bags with a similar design. I was rather happy with it, as I had planned to make Luna more of an agility based fighter while the brothers would be tankier like me. The additional weight wouldn't affect Deimos or Phobos that much, but for Luna, it would greatly reduce her speed, making her less effective during combat.

We paid for the clothes, said our thanks, and moved over to Erhard's for the last time today. When we arrived, he was impressed by the clothes we had gotten.

"You two look like a pair of fine young men." Erhard said, gesturing to the brothers. "And Luna, you are becoming quite the lady."

All three of the wolves grinned, enjoying the praise from amounted to their uncle.

"Hey Erhard, we need a few more things from you."

"Still? You've gone on a spending spree, today kid. I know I paid a lot for that leather but still."

"Yeah well, that's what happens when you have three more people to buy stuff for. I'm gonna need to get them some weapons to use."

He raised an eyebrow. "Aren't they giant wolves? Shouldn't they be armed enough?"

"Yes, but I want them to be able to fight as both wolves and humans. If we find ourselves in tunnels or cramped areas again, we would be at a horrible disadvantage. Plus, it will allow us to form a small phalanx formation if we have enough shields."

"Hmm." He hummed.

I turned to the wolves. "You three, look through the shop and find a weapon you like, but keep in mind what position I want you in. Phobos, Deimos, find a weapon you fight while using a heavy shield with. Luna, look for something that can keep you mobile, you'll be our agility fighter."

They nodded and looked through the store. I asked Erhard to bring up two bring out two pavise shields along with a buckler shield. He got them and I noted the similarities to the tower shield. They were almost the same except the pavise shield only went up to the below the shoulder when on the ground. Otherwise, it was the same, pertaining to the look of silvery plates layered one on top of the other.

I copied both shields for myself and bought them for the wolves. They came back with the weapons of their choosing. Luna was the first to finish selecting her weapons, those being a short sword as her weapon. It was rather bland with the most eye-catching aspect is that the blade was similar to ones on my Voridus shield.

Deimos was the second, having brought up a pair of one-handed axes. Once again they were rather bland and made from black iron.

Phobos came up with the oddest choice. He had selected a short sword as well but in addition to a war hammer. I was about to ask why but decided against it, having been a long day already.

I had also asked for a small, red combat dress, shoes, and a knife. I received awkward looks from everyone room, unsure of what I planned to do. I simply said, "You'll see." and I put the items in my own bag, knowing another person would soon be joining our party.

I paid for the weapons and armor, a total of one hundred and fifty hundred silvers all around, and thanked him for his services. We left and headed for the restaurant, wanting to get some dinner before heading to an inn. We arrived and sat down, placing our bags, now holding our weapons with them, on the ground. The waiters had remembered us from earlier and where rather quick to take our order, something I was rather happy with.

We ate in relative silence again, everyone being too hungry to talk. It was rather peaceful until a certain trio of morons had appeared.

"Hey, hey, why you wearing the hood?" Said someone from behind me.

'Well, I guess it's that time.' Getting back up, I faced the trio.

"You three, buy an extra meal and pack it up, meet me in front of the restaurant when you're down. I'll be back in a bit." Turning to face the three. "Okay, you know what's going on, I know what's going on, so how about we just take this out back."

They grinned, unaware of what was going to happen.

'Cocky bastards.' I thought, noticing a slightly brighter glow on the inside of my hood. We walked out the back of the restaurant, coming into a secluded alleyway. We walked for a bit, not wanting to tip off the people of what was about to happen. While we walked, I noticed something about the thugs.

They were sweating profusely. They weren't walking straight, and would sometimes rub their heads in pain. One of them looked to be struggling just to stand up. I turned around, thinking we had put in enough distance now.

"Alright, you want my money," I said, giving a 'come at me' gesture, "come and take it."

They charged me, but their movements were sloppy and slow, more so than what they should have been. I delivered a solid punch to the first, causing him to double over. I brought my fist above my head and slammed them into his back, knocking him into the ground.

As the second charged I brought my arm and bashed my shield across his face, knocking him out completely. The last came at me but what I saw left me surprised. He swayed from side to side desperately trying to stay upright while running, his eyes completely blank. He fell down in front of me, gasping for air. I could see the sweat pouring from all over his body. His clothes were drenched in it.

'This isn't right.' I took a knee next to him and looked him over. He was clearly fatigued, and if he wasn't so red, he would've been green. He held his head in pain. I didn't see any injuries, so it was either small or a migraine.

Curious, I put my hand on his forehead, finding he was burning up with a high fever. I pulled my hand away, surprised by the heat. Looking at the other two, I could see they were experiencing something similar.

'Complete collapse. Maybe heat exhaustion? But then what would the cause be?' It was then that I noticed it.

Walking up to a window that was apart of a nearby wall, I looked at my reflection in the glass. My armor. my cloak. my mask. I could see it all put together. And staring back at me, where a pair of eyes, glowing a heavy green where it should be a soft brown. They covered the whole reflection in a green haze and stood out like light flashlights in the dark glass.

I had noticed it, but I never truly realized just what they were, or that I even had them.

'That's where it came from.' I turned to the three thugs, still lying on the ground. Multiple theories came running through my head. Maybe it was some changed form of the rage series? I did become enraged earlier. But would that have any effect?

I walked over to the leader and opened his brown jacket. In it, I saw a small coin purse. I stood there and looked between it and the pained face of the lead thug.

'This world really has made me a hardass huh.' I thought as I grabbed the coins and closed his jacket. I reached into my back pocket and pulled out three recovery potions and left them by him.

"Consider this payment." I said as I opened it. To my luck, in it was about four hundred silver coins. It effectively made up for all the money I had spent today, and then a little more.

It almost did anyway.

"Well, well. It appears there is some truth to those rumors." I looked up to see a rather short and chubby man leaning out from behind a wall. I was almost twice as tall as him while he was almost twice as wide. He was dressed extravagant but tacky clothing. His clothing was a dark purple suit and black dress shoes. His collar had a large fur backing and on his head were a pair of golden spectacles and black top hat.

"Beloukas. I was wondering when you'd show up." I said.

His face morphed into shock but was quickly replaced by a grin from ear to ear. "Even the crazy ones." He said, walking out from a spot behind the wall. "A man with foreknowledge of events, accused of crimes he didn't commit, and now hiding amongst the population with none the wiser."

As much as he was an entertaining character, I wasn't in the mood to deal with him right now.

Especially knowing his preferred trade.

"Look, I know what you sell, and you know what I want. So let's skip the pleasantries and get down to business shall we?"

His grin only grew. "Oh ho ho! I knew I'd like you. Come, I'll escort you to my tent. I followed him through the city streets. Not far from where we were was his tent. It looked like a circus tent but purple stripes paralleled white where it should've been red.

We walked in and immediately flinched at the sight.

"What's the matter, my boy?" He said, turning to me. "Never seen a slave trade before?"

All around us where cages upon cages, stacked as tall as the tent itself. In each one was a monster, beast man, and demi-human alike.

It smelled like disease and decay.

I shuddered, utterly repulsed by what I was seeing, but I steeled myself and moved past Beloukas, already knowing where who I wanted was. Beloukas must've figured that out as he didn't say anything during my whole walk. Turning a corner, I could see a cage with a tarp pulled over it. From it, I could hear coughing. I wasn't heavy or deep, but rather small and high pitched.

Walking over, I pulled the tarp away.

Inside was a young girl. She had brown hair and a pair of bushy ears and tail, similar to a raccoons'. Her hair was messy and filthy and not much other than slave rags covered her. She couldn't have been more than twelve years old.

She looked up at me and flinched. I could see the fear in her eyes.

'Raphtalia… To think this was how you met the original Shield Hero.'_ou met the original Shield Hero._'


	5. Growing the Pack

Chapter 5, Growing the Pack

I kneeled outside of Raphtalia's cage, taking off my hood and mask to let her see my face. "Hey," I said in a soft voice while sticking my hand into the cage, "don't worry. You'll be safe with me."

She recoiled at the sight of my hand, eyeing it with fear, but slowly, she moved near it and put her hand in mine. I placed my thumb over her hands, surprised to see how small they were compared to mine.

"I assume this is what you're looking for?" Beloukas asked, curiously.

I slowly pulled my hand back and stood up to my full height. I turned to Beloukas and nodded. "How much?"

"Forty silvers my boy." He said with a grin.

"Thirty, as per her original price." I said, not wanting to deal with him any longer than I had to.

It seemed at every corner, he liked me more. "You impress me, my Boy! I'll make it twenty-five for being a great business partner!"

'He's trying to keep me coming back. I guess I have to get Filo as well.' He opened the cage and escorted both of us to another room. Animal skins lined the walls and floors, with a hardwood desk towards one end of the room. On it was a variety of equipment.

He had Raphtalia sit down on one of the rugs and gestured me over to the desk.

"I assume you know what to do." Beloukas said, holding out a knife and small cup with a strange liquid in. I took the knife and pricked my finger, letting some of the blood collect and drip into the liquid.

I picked up a small piece of cloth and wrapped it around my finger to keep from getting my blood on what I touched while Beloukas stirred the cup.

He picked up a brush and dipped it in the mixture. He pulled down part of the collar on Raphtalias rags and painted over the crest on her chest. The crest glowed and electricity began to arc from it, causing the small girl to whimper in pain.

It ended quickly though, something fortunate for both Raphtalia's Shake and Beloukas'.

"Is there a changing room nearby?" I asked Beloukas.

"Yes, there's one right over there." he said, pointing to some cloth that had been hung up along a wall. I nodded and took my bag off. I opened it and took out the set of small clothes I had purchased from Erhard. It was a small red dress skirt with white sleeves, and leather shoes. I had purchased a knife as well but kept it in my hand.

I handed the clothes to her and asked her to go put them on. She was surprised when I handed them to her, unsure of if to take them or not. I continued to hold them, waiting for her to pick them up. She did and went behind one of the curtains to put them on.

"Clothes prepared already? You really did know what you wanted." Beloukas said. "Tell me, why her? She's sick and weak. She'd be cannon fodder in any real fight."

"She is weak now, I admit. It would not take much to kill her. But given even a small amount of time, she will become quite the fighter, and a loyal one at that." I said.

"Very well. I won't question the likes of someone who knows the world's fate." He said. Raphtalia walked back out, wearing the small clothes and boots I had handed her. She came up to my side and kept me between her and Beloukas. "I do hope to do business with you again, Shield Hero."

Beloukas waved us goodbye as we left the tent. Raphtalia paused as she neared the exit of the tent. I stopped walking and turned back at her. Putting my hand on her back, I gestured for her to follow.

"Come on. You haven't met the others yet." I said, putting my mask and hood back on.

We walked back to the restaurant. During the walk, Raphtalia had stayed close to me, keeping the tale end of my cloak over herself and coughing every now and then. When we arrived at the restaurant, I saw wolves standing near the entry, each with sower looks on their faces and Luna trying to calm them.

They worsened at the sight of me.

"Hey Alpha," Deimos started, sounding none too pleased, "Wanna explain our new companion to us?" Raphtalia immediately flinched, wrapping herself further in my cloak. Luna stood by worried, while Phobos, though not violent, was certainly angered.

'They must've had an alert that said she was a slave. I guess flinging them into adulthood taught them as well. Best clear this up now to avoid confusion.'

"Easy Deimos." I said, before putting a hand behind myself. "Come on Raphtalia. They're nice people, they won't hurt. They just want to meet you."

Slowly, she unrolled herself, peaking out, but hiding again when she saw Deimos. He looked at me, the sower look replaced by one of understanding.

"Hey, I'm sorry." He started, lowering down into a crouch. "I didn't mean to scare you. I just… Didn't know what was going on. Can you come out please?" The wrap loosened a bit. Slowly, she dropped the cloak, though still hiding behind me. Deimos was smiling, trying his best to appear not at all threatening to the young girl.

"So that's what those clothes were for." Luna said out loud.

I nodded and brought everyone's attention to me. "Let's find an inn to stay tonight. We'll have a few more things to do before we can leave, but they should be fairly quick. Sound good?"

The others agreed. We moved to find an inn not to far from where we ate. It was rather quaint, with the limited seating in the small lobby, and a desk next to the stairs to where the rooms where. We walked up to the attendant and started talking.

"Hello, sir. What can I do for you?" He asked, somewhat unsure of my party. He was wearing black pants and a vest with a white dress shirt underneath.

"I need two rooms, with a few beds for me and my party. Got any open?"

"I'm sorry but, most of the rooms are currently occupied. We have on more open, but you will all have to share it." He said. Looking at the wall of keys behind him, I could see only set left.

'Guess he isn't lying.'

I was about to say we should leave but Luna spoke.

"It's fine so long as there are enough beds, we're used to having to sleep close together so sharing a room won't be too bad."

'That was one time and you were all still wolves.' Though I couldn't argue. The inn was close to where we'd have to go and we might not have luck with other inns, given how many people are still walking around.

'It's an odd thing to go off of but even so, I think we can make it work.'

The attendant was surprised for a second but smiled and grabbed the key for us. "Of course. I should've expected as much from a party of adventurers like yourselves."

He handed us the key, and I handed him three silvers for the room. We went up, and were relieved to find that the room was rather spacious. In it were two large beds and in between was a small nightstand. The walls and flooring were hardwood, with a strange yellowish coloring added above waist height. We took off our armor and jackets, hanging them on a rack on the wall.

We hadn't bought any sleepwear yet and opted to simply sleep in their regular clothes.

I took off my armor plating, laying down on top of my bag. I changed out of my shirt long sleeve shirt and grimaced at the large hole on the left sleeve before changing to the short sleeve from my old world. It earned a few curious looks from the other worlds.

"Where'd you get that shirt?" Phobos asked, noticing the material and design. It was made from a fiber that use to be made into athletic wear but grew into more casual, loose worn items over time.

"It was one my belongings from my old world when I was summoned here. Got to keep my hoodie too."

"What was your world like?" Luna said, her attention wrapped up in the new possibilities.

"Well," I said, sitting down on one of the beds, "my world is a lot different. We don't have beast-men or demi-humans, only regular humans. We also don't have any magic, so we rely entirely on advanced technologies."

"No magic?" Deimos asked. I nodded.

"How advanced is it?" Luna asked.

"Well, a good comparison is to say many of the people here would think what we achieved was impossible. You see, my world is in what's known as the space age, while your world is in the late middle ages. Comparatively, your world would be considered primitive to our own."

"Primitive?" Deimos.

"Yes. You see, the technology in my world has advanced to the point that my people have expanded past our own planet and onto other worlds, including our moons. My home, the American Komissariat, was where the first generation of near light-speed engines was built. To give some context the American Komissariat is essentially the section of Earth that was originally controlled by the American Federation. After a big ass war thirty years ago that we're still cleaning up, much of the world starting going through this phase of unification into the Union. So far, it extends to most of the planets of moons of the solar system."

I turned to my left. "Luna, you were named after Earth's moon. It's usually referred to as the Lunar gateway, where ships come to dock or exchange cargo before making the final trip to Earth."

"What about us?" Phobos asked. Before I could respond, Raphtalia began coughing more and more.

"Hold up, I got something for her." I brought my pack over and opened it up, looking for any ingredients inside. I took them out and used my compounding shield and created a small potion inside an empty potion bottle.

I gave the potion to Raphtalia and held it while she drank it, making sure she wouldn't spill any, before continuing with my explanation.

"You two were named after the Martian moons. There the fortress moons of Mars, and were practically unbeatable during the war." I started, cleaning the vial with a cloth that was inside to wipe away the residue before putting it back in my bag.

'I'll have to remember to wash it.'

Looking out the window, I could see it was well into the night, with the moon was high in the sky. Turning back to the others, I decided to wrap up this rather short conversation.

"Hey, it's pretty late. I'm gonna head to bed. Night y'all." I said, laying down in the bed I was sitting on. I changed my shield to the rope shield and placed in on my hip. I expected to have to share it with one of the others, there were only two for five people. What I didn't expect was what came next.

I fell on my left side when I had lied down. Deimos fell behind me, his back on mine, while Luna laid down in front of me and put her back on my torso. A blush grew on my face at the position I had been put in while Luna seemed almost oblivious.

Phobos simply sighed and had Raphtalia lay down in the second bed. He got in as well on the opposite end and kept his back to her while staying as close to the end as possible.

I moved my head to see Luna had already fallen asleep. I could already feel steady breathing through my back from Deimos. He had fallen asleep as well.

'Not the weirdest thing to happen but sure, why not.' I reached over and brought the candle that was on the stand to myself and blew it out. I set it back down and let sleep overtake me.

_ *Break

I was woken up by the sound of screaming. Everyone else jolted awake to see Raphtalia sitting up, crying. Phobos was trying to calm her but had was having limited success. Deimos and I got up and moved to try and calm her down. Deimos was rather quick, having moved around us to bring her into a hug, hoping to comfort her.

Luna got up, moving my arm off of her and began helping Deimos.

'How did my arm get like that?'

"Hey, it's alright. We're here for you." Luna started, following with more words of comfort. Slowly but surely, Raphtalia began to calm down. It took some time, but she was fast asleep again, Deimos still holding her. I was rather annoyed however, having forgotten another detail I knew well about.

"Hey Deimos, can you stay like this for tonight? It might help stay asleep easier."

He hesitated for a second but agreed. He moved onto the ground and sat on a pillow we put down, and leaned against the bed with Raphtalia asleep on him. The space between the two beds was rather small so he was quite cramped. We made sure he was comfy as best we could before I laid back down in the bed. Phobos, while worried for Raphtalia, was still happy to spread out on the bed. Luna returned to her spot as well, pulling my arm back over herself.

'So that's how my arm got there.'

_ *Break

I was woken up by a bright light hitting me in the face. Adjusting myself and opening my eyes, I could see the sun was shining through the windows. The light that was hitting me was bouncing off of Deimos' shield that he had set down by the wall near the door.

Looking off the bed, I could see Deimos and Raphtalia were still fast asleep.

"Come on y'all, time to get up." I said, slowly getting up. Phobos was rather quick to follow, getting up on the other side of the bed that Deimos was lying against. Luna protested, while Deimos pulled the cover of the bed he was resting against over his face. Raphtalia rubbed her eyes and yawned, getting up as well.

I got up as well and began putting my long-sleeved shirt on, along with my armor plates. Phobos followed suit, putting his jacket and leather plates on as well. Deimos and Luna, I'll be it begrudgingly, began putting their armor on as well.

It was now that I had gotten a good look at the platings. Phobos' plate was sectioned into squares with a metal stud in the center of each on. He slid on his boots and bandana on.

Deimos followed after, putting on a leather chest piece as well, but with the addition of full gauntlets instead just gloves.

Luna's armor was smooth and simply, fitting snugly over her jacket and covering the majority of her torso and shoulders. A second pair of curved leather plates covered her outer thighs as well.

I unwrapped my arm, figuring that the gels had done there job. The underpart of my arm left fairly untouched but the top part suffered severe burns. The skin, while not the same charred black and red it was before, was still a dark red with a splotchy pattern.

I pulled out one of the containers from my bag and applied a small amount of cream to the burn before wrapping it with new bandages. I pulled out a new leather plate that Erhard had sold us and put it on over the bandages. I put my mask back on and pulled my hood up before addressing the rest of the group.

"Y'all ready?" I asked. They nodded, all wearing their clothes and bags. Deimos and Phobos kept their shields over their bags on their backs while Luna simply strapped it to her hip. They all nodded and left the room. I turned to walk out but heard Deimos begin to cough behind me.

'Shit.'

* * *

"These are some rather amazing quality potions. Far better than anything I've ever scene. Where do you find them?" said the local Apothecary. He was an older man with white hair and a pair of glasses. On him was a blue striped, long sleeve shirt with a blacks vest. His pants were darker as well.

We had already eaten breakfast and decided to head to one of the potion shops to see if we could discern a recipe for them.

"Found them in an old dungeon. Old mages laboratory or stock house if I remember. Figured they were good and wanted to know if we could make more of them." I said. I remembered this man had done business with Naofumi rather easily, despite the accusations. Upon meeting him, I discovered he stopped listening to anything involving Princess Malty for a variety of reasons.

His main reason was that it wasn't the first time that Malty's had been brought up alongside trouble, something I was not previously aware of, and figured this was another one of her doings.

"Can you identify the ingredients?"

"Perhaps, but it will take time. Did you happen to find a formula as well? Even a partial one will be quite helpful."

"No. It was only the potions and a few other things but we already have those being looked at." Nothing I read in the journal ever talked about the potions. If there was a recipe than it was probably destroyed.

"Hmmm. Unfortunate. I can reverse the formula, but once I do, I'll need ingredients to make it, assuming I don't already have them. Anything else?"

"Would you happen to have any books on hand that detail ingredients for potions, along with recipes? I'd rather not have to use this for wounds that can be easily treated with lesser potions."

"I do." He said, taking out an old, leather-bound book. "Consider it thanks for bringing me such a unique potion."

I thanked him for the book and put it my bag. I left the store after buying a few potions stock up and walked out to see the wolves and Raphtalia waiting near the entrance. I nodded and had them follow me to one more place before we departed.

'I'll want to get that timer now instead of later. I don't know how much time is left, and with how strange this world already is, the time between waves may have very well changed as well.'

As we approached the church, I began taking in details of it. The building consisted of very triangular pieces, all fitting together into three towers.

The towers themselves were odd, being one diamond-like blocks stacked on top and ending off in a point with either a sword, bow or spear. There wasn't anything that so much as mentioned the shield which left me unsurprised.

I entered and was greeted by one of the nuns. She wore a full white dress with a cloth and warp over her head. She smiled and greeted me. A small piece of black hair came out from under the headpiece above her glasses.

If I remember, it was the same one who'll try and rip me off of a gold coin for a crappy bottle of holy water.

"Hello sir. What brings you to this holy place of the Three Heroes."

'Up yours.'

"I wish to see the dragons hourglass to know how much time until the next wave."

She nodded and asked me to follow her. The halls were pure white marble and attended to by other nuns all wearing similar attire. She brought me into a large stone chamber. In the center was the Dragons hourglass. It was a large hourglass piece with red sand falling down in it. Surrounding it were intricate goldenrods, each resembling a dragon at the end and bent around the hourglass.

Surrounding the piece where multiple tons column and a drop off between the walkway and the platform it rested on. I walked up to the drop off and saw a set of golden stairs come up. I walked up to them and, to my surprise, the red jewel at the top of the hourglass that I hadn't noticed began to glow.

I brought my shield in front of me, still in its Various form, and a beam connected between the gem in the shield and hourglass. Many of the nuns seemed surprised, not quite sure what was happening.

'Good, they might not yet realize I'm the Shield Hero but that might change once word gets around. Best get out of here before they realize.'

A countdown timer appeared in my vision of when the next wave would hit.

'A bit more time than a month left. That doesn't seem quite right. It should below a month at most.'

I walked down the pathway and faced the nun that had escorted us. I contemplated asking the nun how much time had passed since the previous wave but didn't want to chance being found out.

"And who might you be?" Said a familiar voice.

'Shit, he's early. This wasn't supposed to happen for a while.'

I looked up and, sure enough, Motoyasu was approaching us along with his party members.

'Ren and Itsuki aren't here? I guess it's possible he came here alone for the same reason I did.'

I squinted, noticing something off about him. He looked sick and tired. His eyes held heavy bags under them as he dragged his feet along the marble floor. There was more to it but I couldn't place my finger on it. His party members followed behind him. Malty followed by his left side, who didn't look much better than Motoyasu. A quick check of his level revealed he was still only level one.

'_Whatever _that_ was _must've hit them pretty hard. If those thugs are anything to go by than it's a miracle these two idiots are even standing.'

I slid my shield to my hip under my cloak, hoping neither of them would notice it. I remained quiet and simply stared at him. I kept my hood down so he wouldn't see the exposed part of my face.

"Sir Motoyasu asked you a question!" Said Malty, still undeterred in her weakened state.

"My apologies." I said in a deep voice, hoping to mask it from the two. Motoyasu flinched, seeming to almost recognize the voice, but didn't do anything more. I stayed quiet as well and began to walk around him. The others followed my lead, ignoring Malty's ramblings. As I passed him, I could see him eyeing Luna.

I walked behind him a bit further and turned around, waiting to see what he would do. As Luna got closer, there was a glint in his eye for just a second before disappearing entirely. He looked down at the floor with a saddened expression.

'The hell? What's up with him?'

He continued to stare at the floor as Luna passed, every ounce of motivation seeming to have left him. I turned around and left the chamber with my party. I spared one more glance at him before I exited and saw the saddened look still hadn't left his face.

We had some distance put between us and the city before I told the wolves they could transform. The clothes worked wonderfully, transforming with the wolves instead of ripping. Around their necks were heavy leather collars, the cloths adding a special flare. Their bags hung from above their rear legs. The bags split with the top section on one side of the hip and the bottom on the other.

Under the straps holding the bags was a blanket to make heavy loads more comfortable. Luna was now the smallest of the wolves, with Phobos and Deimos being longer and broader to reflect their human forms.

"Hey Alpha," asked Deimos, "how are you and the cub gonna keep up with us? Or do you have a transformation we just don't know about?"

I scratched my head through my cloak. 'Crap. I guess I didn't think of that part… Since when did they start calling Raphtalia the cub?'

"He could probably just ride one of us." Said Phobos. I saw a few other animals doing it in the city, I don't see we can't do it."

"But who would do it?"

"I can take Alpha." Said Luna. Everyone looked at her with mild surprise. "I already have the lightest load out of everyone, so adding him wouldn't be too much trouble, especially since I'm already the fastest out everyone."

'She has a point. Her luggage capacity is only about half her brothers… Did the Tailor plan for her brothers to shovel the weight?'

"I can take Raphtalia. She seems to be a bit more comfortable with me out of everyone." Said Deimos. Truth to his word, she was already standing by one of his legs.

'Strange, I thought she would be terrified of them since her parents were killed by two-headed dogs… World difference maybe? I suppose I'll find out at some point but best not pry now.'

"Alright," I said hesitantly, "but if it becomes too much, feel free to let Phobos or Deimos take over."

I helped get Raphtalia up onto Deimos' back and made sure she was situated behind his shoulders. She grabbed a handful of the scruff around his neck so she wouldn't fall off.

I walked over to Luna and grabbed a handful of the scruff around her neck and pulled myself up with a jump. I situated myself a bit behind her shoulders as well to reduce the amount of weight on the middle of her back.

It didn't make for the most comfortable seat but was better than walking.

"Everyone good?" I asked. Everyone was ready and so we set out. We began with a slow walk but gradually began to speed up until we had entered a full run. I took point, being the party leader. Deimos was following on my left flank while Phobos followed a bit farther back on the right.

I looked behind me to see Raphtalia smiling on Deimos' back, enjoying the ride. Glad to see she hadn't fallen off, I looked forward down the path we were following. It was now that I put my hood down, letting the air hit my face.

'_Let's see just what this new world has_.'


	6. The Missing Piece

Chapter 6, The Missing Piece

Little more than a month had passed since we left the city. After some time exploring the nearby forest, we had traveled out to Riyute village. I had remembered their mine had been filled with monsters since the first wave and our party had traveled to clear them out. We picked up a few other jobs as well, from acting as escorts for the miners to blacksmiths for the village. We received a portion of the mining profits, as well as any and all monster loot as our pay.

I took some time in the village to learn some of the written languages, as well as play a hand in the village's future. I had made a deal with the lord to establish a proper village Militia, armed with the weapons and armor I had supplied.

Raphtalia, though limited in her knowledge, proved to be a rather good teacher. She had much since our departure, now being about the same level as everyone else. Since then, we have had to buy new armor and clothes for her, along with additional pieces for the wolves. Our levels hadn't capped out though and didn't even make it the thirties. Our experience gain had suffered a debuff after gaining so many levels in a short period of time.

After some time, and a somber moment, we had discovered that, unfortunately, her parents were killed, but it wasn't by a three-headed dog. She recounted the event best she could, but the memory was fuzzy. She certainly did remember three-headed dogs present, but what killed her parents specifically was something else entirely.

Our search for the vaults had been lackluster at best. Most of our time had been spent around the capital city, Riyute village, or somewhere in between. We explored much of the territory, hoping to find a second cache or even a vault, but ultimately came up with nothing. On a second map I had purchased from the village were the markings of locations we had tried and suspected.

My eyes had been strange during the time we were out. While the effects of the green glow were becoming more potent. It didn't seem to affect my party members, but it certainly affected everyone else. It only spiked in proportion to the negative emotions I experienced, but not much past that.

We walked in through the gates, the guards let us through without trouble. My armor had been advanced with components of my own. Much of the leather had been replaced and used as a base layer for metal plates, while the chest piece had been bulked up by stronger alloys.

It more closely resembled the prototype armor I had found with sharp angles and geometric pieces. A single green cloth hung from my right hip with metal covers falling beside my legs. Around my neck was a green wrap of cloth and strapped over my back was the canvas bag I brought from my old world, reinforced with extra fabric. I dropped the cloak some time ago, realizing how much it got in the way of fighting.

Raphtalia underwent a similar though more drastic transformation. In only a month, she had grown to match the other wolves in appearance. She was almost as tall as Luna, and built rather similar, though not as muscular. Her red dress had been remade into a larger size but with darker sides and white sleeves.

Metal pieces now donned her clothing, leaving her well protected, but not limited in her movements. Much of it was centered around her torso, gauntlets, and new boots that came up to about her mid-thigh.

The armor for the wolves had been primarily given the addition of metal plates or chainmail linings, along with saddles for Luna and Phobos. As a wolf, the metal from Luna's new armor reformed itself to cover her front chest and shoulders. She had trouble acting as my riding partner early on, but those problems were quickly rectified.

Deimos remained as Raphtalias' partner while Phobos volunteered to be the pack mule of the group. Deimos had acquired a saddle similar to Luna but his armor was far more heavy-duty and well covering. Along his sides were a chainmail blanket and heavy cloth, giving him a good amount of protection from standard weapons.

Phobos' didn't have a saddle, and instead donned a full piece of metal armor that covered his front half. The interlocking metal pieces wrapped around his neck and came up behind his head, while going down his back to his stomach.

We walked through the city, making chatter as we went through.

"I can't believe its already been a month." Said Phobos, carrying a large load of items and wares we had collected.

"I know. It's almost time for the wave. You think we're ready for it?" Asked Raphtalia. She had come out of her shell a bit and was far more confident in herself, though still worried about the future.

"Relax Raphtalia. With how many levels we've gotten, we should be able to handle just about anything that shows up." I said, easing her worries. While not growing as fast as before, we had all reached the high twenties. "Besides, you know what'll happen. Why else do you think I chose for us to stay close to Riyute for leveling?"

"Maybe." She said. "But are you sure it'll go how you remember? The vaults were never a thing before so who's to say the waves haven't changed either?"

"That's what the Militia is for. Even if things go south, they'll still have a defensive force to protect the village. Their gear is top quality, better than the standard knight's armor. Their training isn't too great, but what they've been taught should suffice for now. And even if they're forced to retreat, the village will be evacuated anyway, so loss of life and material should be minimal." I told them.

The armor I constructed for the Militia soldiers was designed with the same patterns as Phobos' and my armor. While the Melromarc knight armor consisted primarily of a helmet and chest piece, the Militia armor was an armored jacket that came down to their knees. It was plated with metal strips and pieces to protects the legs, chest, and arms. In addition to it were armored boots, gloves, and a helmet, each with the same qualities of the armor.

It was more expensive than the standard knight but far more protective. Combined with the combat training of a retired knight and adventurer who lived in the village, they were well prepared. My party had picked up a few lessons from them as well, including formations and fighting styles.

The image of an older man wearing the Militia armored coat and wielding a sword and shield came to mind. His armor had the addition of larger shoulder plates and a cloth that hung from his shoulder down his back. His white hair was cut short and his beard was trimmed neatly. His face was stern but it gave way to a smile and thumbs up.

'Crazy old man.' I thought, thinking of some of the stunts he pulled during my time there.

I smiled as no one even bat an eye at me. The only distinct item was my shield, and it rested comfortably on my hip in its Voridis form. The month had been busy and full people preparing for the next wave. I doubted anyone ever even thought of the shield hero a few days after he 'disappeared'. I ran my hand through my hair, getting a feel for it. It had grown longer and was becoming a bit of a pain when fighting.

I received some looks from my party members but they smiled and went back to their talks. We went from store to store, selling items and materials we had gotten our hands on.

I had made a large sum of money from potion making, having used enhanced ingredients from my plant shield. Blacksmithing, while profitable, wasn't as much as potion-making as I had to sell my builds at lower prices to ensure the village was given protection.

I could have given it to them for free but I went through with that, I would burn through my finances to quickly and have nothing left.

As we strolled through the city, we came across a familiar face.

"Kid? That you?"

I looked down to my left and saw Erhard standing there with a smile on his face.

"Hey Old Man." I said getting down from Luna. "How ya' been?"

"Pretty good but I wanna know what you've been up to. Disappear for almost a month and show up a day before the wave. I know you got some stories to tell."

"Right you are. Wanna come get some lunch with us? Be fun to catch up."

He nodded. "Sounds good kid." We walked down the street together. With all our items sold, the wolves had transformed back into their human forms.

Luna's armor hadn't changed much, though it had been bulked up with metal plates along her legs and breast piece. Phobos' coat had undergone an entire redo. It closely resembled the Militia armor but the metal chest piece was far bulkier. His metal boots and gauntlets were larger and wrapped around his arm instead of only covering the top and front. Deimos' now boasted metal pieces on his shoulders and chest. As an extra layer of protection, around his waist and under his chest plate was a web of chainmail. It came down a bit lower and showed under the flaps of his coat.

I noticed that we were passing by the apothecary and told everyone that I'll catch up with them. I went into the shop to collect the recipe for the potions.

"Hello sir." I said as I entered.

"Ah, it's you." He said surprised.

"How has that little project come along?" I asked.

"I've identified most of the ingredients required, and managed to make a lesser version of it, but to make the ones at the level you brought to me would require even higher level items. Some of them I've personally never even seen before." He said as he handed me a sheet of paper and two small containers. I picked up the sheet and looked over.

'...I hope I'm just not reading that right.'

"Excuse me, sir, I'm still a little new to the written language and want to confirm… That says pixie dust right?" I said, pointing at a set of characters on the sheet.

"Yes, it does. I was surprised myself."

'...Well, that's something.'

"Alright. Well, thanks for getting me the recipe." I said, handing him a small bag of silvers. I left and started heading to the restaurant everyone was going to.

_*Break

"Hahahah!" Erhard laughed. We had gotten to the restaurant a while ago and were now waiting for our food. To pass the time, we had started telling Erhard about some of our encounters around Riyute village.

The story just told was about Old Man Jax, the old soldier we had recruited to help us train the Militia. He had the soldier all sleep outside for very few hours to find the ones with the strongest endurance. The weakest would act as guards for civilians leaving while the strongest would stay behind and defend the village.

I had brought in aspects of my former Militia, including morning call. One of the recruits would wake up before everyone else and call out when everyone would get up for training. One recruit, in particular, had trouble getting the call right, and Jax spared no mercy for even the smallest of mistakes.

It was horrible for the recruit but pure comedy for anyone watching. By the end of it, Jax was having the recruit doing push-ups with the added weight of himself on the recruits back whilst yelling in his ear.

"I know." Phobos said, laughing at the story as well. "God, that guy was great but he was a total hardass."

"What about the mines. I heard it started picking up business again not to long ago."

"That was our doing. We cleared out the monsters and then pulled together a mining crew. Used the metals to start building up and arming a militia. Word got around through the grapevine and some traders started coming along to so the town looking for bodyguards to hire. Might see a trade boom there in the near future if the momentum keeps up."

"What about the waves. Wouldn't hiring them out prevent them from defending the village."

"Only a handful were certified to take up those requests, and they have all been recalled." Said Luna. "We'll reopen the job board after the wave though so we can keep traders coming in."

"We?"

"We made a deal with the village lord when we established the Militia. The deal was I provide quality armor for cheap while the Militia operates as my property and under my command, while the village pays for the defense. The deal will continue until he pays off the armor in the form of the soldiers pays, but I will remain as the apparent general."

Erhard blinked and set his beer down. "Let me get this straight. You were gown one month, and in that time you, not even getting into the other things you did, built the equivalent of a small army."

"Yes." I said, nonchalantly. Erhard sighed and muttered something but I didn't quite catch it. I looked to my side and saw a waitress coming up with our food. "Ah, foods here."

They handed us our food and we began to eat. I took off my mask without thinking and revealed the scruff underneath. Some people looked at me and squinted but went back to eating their meals.

'And they are none the wiser.'

"Hey Erhard," I started, "how has that armor been coming along?"

He hummed through the bite he had in his mouth and started chewing faster. "Kid, I can't make a single bit of sense out of it. Between the plates was this weird design of metalwork. Didn't have a spec of rust on it."

"Between the plates?" I said through a mouthful.

"Yeah. Looked like a bunch of lines and rings. They all connected to this weird cast in the center. Any idea what it might be?"

"I'll have to take a look at it to figure out. It does explain what made the armor a prototype though." I mulled the thoughts over in my head but continued to eat, listening to the chatter between the others.

_*Break

We had finished eating and decided to go to Erhard's shop, wanting to repair our gear, but also to inspect his discoveries about the armor. On the way, we picked up a conversation about the Militia in Lute.

"Do the soldiers know who you are?" Erhard asked.

"The whole village does. They were shocked at first but they were pretty friendly after I established a defense force and told them what all will happen. Some didn't believe me, obviously, but enough did. Right now they should be evacuating the village of all people and resources with the Militia soldiers staying to defend the town."

"Won't the soldiers need some supplies?"

"They will, and a small cache was left in the village in a cellar someone had lent for us to use. He said that if he was gonna trust anyone with it it'd the Militia."

"Well isn't that something." Erhard said with a smile. "How'd you get them to trust you that much?"

"That would be because of an incident in the mines."

"And what exactly happened?"

I looked over at him and started the story.

"Careful with that black powder! We only have a bit at the moment so don't go throwing it at anything you think needs breaking!" I yelled at a group of miners.

While at Riyute village, we had discovered a sulfur deposit within the mines. The workers didn't care for it with the strange smell, which left a rather large sum for the taking. Combined with charcoal from the fire pit and sulfates I had extracted from the soil, I managed to create rudimentary gunpowder.

Specifically, black powder.

Mining the sulfur and making the charcoal wasn't the hard part, it was extracting the sulfates in large enough quantities for the explosive to be of use. And I did not feel like throwing it at whatever was around.

We were positioned on a pathway near a water way within the cave and in front of me were three tunnels. Two of them were larger and well lit, with workers frequently walking in and out of them. At times, Phobos or Deimos would accompany them in either their wolf or demi-human form, helping workers carry out ore or carry in explosives. The last tunnel possessed a weak ceiling.

Without the proper building materials, we had instead opted to blow away the weaker stone in controlled, explosions. I took aside a few miners who were determined to be the most likely to not bring the cave down on themselves or set off the explosives and had them begin strapping the containers to the linings of the cave with a det-cord running out of the cave.

I was standing over a table that had been brought into the mines with Luna peering over my shoulder. She was staring at the English letters, trying to decipher them. Raphtalia had her hands on the table and was standing on her toes, peering over the table and watching me work. On the table were ingredients for making the explosive, as well as one of my notebooks with the written formula and a sheet of paper with calculations on it. Other measuring and mixing equipment was present as well.

I was currently scribbling down onto the paper, trying to improve the ratios to distract myself, not at all pleased with how today had been going. Almost half our stock had been carelessly spent on blowing out walls or in the wrong positions and not dislodging the crystal and or other minerals within the mine. My internal venting was cut short when I heard some of the workers running out of one of the tunnels.

'Oh for Christ sake-what now!?'

I began walking towards the tunnel, pulling out my Voridus shield. Luna followed but Raphtalia stayed by the table. I wasn't surprised when a pack of black, two-headed dogs ran out, chasing the miners. Three miners rounded the corner but a two-headed dog jumped out and bit one of the miners in the leg. It was smaller than I remembered, only coming up to my hip. The miner fell and the dog jumped onto him. The other two workers ran past us while I charged into the cave, aiming for the monster that was mauling the third miner.

I delivered a solid kick, knocking the dog off the worker but kept pushing forward. Two other dogs ran out and joined the first. Two of the three dogs ran at me, teeth bared and ready to bite down. I didn't flinch and simply backhanded both of the first dog's heads. I brought my shield back to my hip and thrust forward into the dog. It howled in pain but I threw it to the side. The second jumped at me but I through it to the side into the rock wall leaving cracks along the stone face.

More dogs began running out of the tunnel, about the same size. I and Luna began dispatching them with relative ease, but slowly their numbers grew and began to push us back towards the wounded miner. I failed to notice one of the miners who escaped run over and pick up my lighter from the table.

He ran over to the det-cord and began striking it with the lighter.

"What the hell are you doing!?" I yelled at him but was forced to look forward again when another dog jumped at my exposed side. He didn't acknowledge me and continued the strike the flint and metal together.

"Stop!" Raphtalia yelled and jumped at the miner, trying to pull him away. He yelled and threw Raphtalia back before striking the lighter again. One of the sparks caught and lit the fuse, the flame rapidly traveling down the wire and towards the explosives.

'Shit!'

I pulled Luna towards myself towards the downed worker and summoned my light shield. I put my hands above my head, a shield of light, formed of hundreds of triangular pieces stacked on top of each other began to form above me.

The explosives detonated, ripping stone out from the weakened rock face. Small boulders began to fall down, with larger pieces striking with heavy thuds. The ceiling slammed against my shield, forcing me down, but I held firm. I opened my eyes to see Luna on her with multiple spots that were bruising and debris on her leg. The miner wasn't trapped, though certainly worse for wear.

Around us were the crushed bodies of dead dogs that were around us when the rocks fell.

"Alpha! Luna!" I heard Deimos yell, turning back into his human form. He looked through the clearing below the large strut of stone that had blocked our pathway. "Don't worry, we'll get you out!" He yelled, clawing away debris.

"Brother!" I heard Phobos yell. He was standing near an end of the strut with his hands under stone. Deimos didn't respond and jumped to Phobos' side and put his hands under the stone as well. They began to lift the stone but I immediately felt the stone above me increase in weight.

"Stop! Stop!"

They set the stone down. The weight didn't leave and only seemed to increase. Deimos looked back through and stuck his hand through the opening.

"Take my hand, I'll pull you out!" He yelled at the worker. The worker took hold of Deimos' hand and was rapidly pulled through the crack. Luna, though shaken up, reached out but get his hand. She tried to move closer but couldn't with the debris on her leg. It wasn't much but with how she was situated, she couldn't find the right angle to move it.

I grunted, my muscles straining under the weight.

I heard growling and looked towards where the cave went deeper. Slowly approaching was the beast I remembered. Its fur was black and its eyes glowed red. If it weren't for the debris, it would've stood as large as Phobos in his wolf form.

"You're a bit bigger than the last one." I said through strained breaths. It bared the white daggers that made its teeth, ready to be the death of me, itself, and Luna. It was about to bite down but was cut short by a flash of red and brown.

Raphtalia had bolted through the small entry and began attacking the dog. In the cramped space, the dog was confined and limited, but Raphtalia moved without trouble, dodging strike after strike and leaving cuts along the necks.

Slowing down, the dog shot both its heads forward trying to catch her. She jumped forward between the heads and, in one motion, stabbed the chest of the dog. The dog screeched but buckled under its own weight, falling to the ground.

Raphtalia fell back, dropping her dagger by her side. She was gasping for air, without a care for where she was.

"Good job Raphtalia." I said through a strained voice. "Now move!"

Raphtalia jumped back up and ran to Luna. Together, they were able to lift the weight off her leg and move Luna. Raphtalia left first while Luna was pulled out by Phobos.

"Phobos, Deimos!" I yelled. "Get ready to lift the stone!"

"What about you?" Asked Deimos.

"Don't worry about me, just get ready."

Phobos and Deimos by the stone and prepared to lift.

"Three! Two! One!" Phobos and Deimos lifted as fast as they could. I felt the weight above me become unbearable. I jumped out from under the weight and rolled under the weight. The barrier above me disappeared and the stone came crumbling down behind me.

A cloud of dust was kicked up, covering everyone in the tunnel.

I rolled onto my back, gasping for air while every muscle in my being screaming in relief.

"Alpha!" I saw Deimos and Phobos run over to me. "Are you alright."

"Never better." I said between pants. I wiped away some of the cold sweat that drenched my clothes and looked behind them. Luna was lying unconscious by the injured worker. I rolled onto my stomach and picked myself up. I could see the miner who had detonated the pathway and limped over to him. He was leaning against a wall near one of the other tunnels.

I crouched by him, a furious look on my face. I took hold of my lighter and ripped it from his hand.

"Get out." I said simply. He sat there for a second but started running out of the tunnel. The other workers had run out to see the event.

"That shield," one of them started, "you're the Shield Hero!"

I looked and saw one of the shorter workers pointing at my shield. The people around him began agreeing, saying things that backed his claim.

I sighed and took down my hood.

"Yes. I am." I said to them. No point in trying to hide. They had figured it out. "Look, just let my companion rest and be treated, then we'll leave the-"

"What are you talking about?" Said one of the chief miners. "You think we believed those rumors? The kingdom always makes claims and then break us villagers trying to back them. We stopped listening to them a long time ago."

"Consider yourself safe here." Said another miner. I was shocked. looking between them, I could see the conviction in all of them.

"Thank you." I simply said.

* * *

Erhard looked at me. He was shocked by what I had down.

"That's how the village found out who you were?"

"Yep. It kinda just snowballed after that. Plans for the Militia began shortly after that. It took some convincing, but the armor and weapons I supplied was the final nail. After that, volunteers came pouring in."

"How many are there?"

"About an eighth of the village men and a few of the women. The Marks and Hardy divisions will stay to defend the village while the Cain division will be with the carriages to act as a guarding force. Old Man Jax is leading the Hardy division while our most promising recruit is leading Marks."

"Divisions?"

I nodded. "In my old world, divisions were made up of some ten to twenty thousand soldiers. But with how many people we have, it's only thirty to fourty."

"That many?" Erhard.

"Well, the village population is about seven hundred and twenty. When you have a size that big, even small fractions can get you a lot of people."

We had finally arrived at Erhards shop. We entered and I followed Erhard into the back, taking off my hood and mask. The rest of them followed and when I asked why, they said they wanted to see what we were doing.

'Better than leaving them out here.' I agreed and we all walked into the back room. I was thankful it was rather spacious as I and Erhard could still move around without trouble.

On a table in the center of the room was the armor. Pieces were laying next to, either in rusted chunks or fragments. I began looking over the exposed area, taking in every detail I could.

The metal was shiny and unrusted like Erhard had said. From what I could tell, the material was pure gold. Around the chest and stomach were strange rings, each one connected by a golden line running around the armor. In the center of the chest, the gold broke apart into smaller pieces and wrapped around a strange crystal.

I was a dark purple, almost black, with no glow or shine to it.

I put my hand on the crystal and began wiggling it out of the gold. With a less than gentle pull, I managed to take out the crystal. It was a round, clean-cut gem with a gold wrap around the back.

I looked at the crystal for a bit longer before setting it on the table and redirecting my attention to the disks in the armor. In the middle of the rings were other metals within in. They were in the same condition as the gold, completely unfazed. I picked away some of the rust around the plates, trying to see if I could get a better look, but didn't see anything past the plates.

"Erhard, what kind of metal is this?" I asked, gesturing to the silvery metal.

"Adamantium. Had it inspected while you were gone by a friend of mine."

"Does it rust?"

"Nope. The stuff's nearly indestructible."

Squinting at the plates, I could see the remains of markings that looked similar to circuitry. Looking back over the positioning, I noticed they were all pointed out at angles covering each face of the armor.

"Resonator plates?" I said to no one in particular.

"What?" Erhard asked.

"Hmm? Oh, the disk on the armor, there resonator plates. There a primary component for energy shielding on our destroyers and near-sol energy collectors. They work by creating a solid barrier of energy to absorb kinetic energy. They're usually put on ships and buildings since we haven't been able to minimize it yet. The closest thing to this scale I've seen are on our combat rigs, and that easily a few tons worth of equipment. I saw them written in the book but they were labeled as projection disk. A bit different in design but ultimately the same thing."

"I'm gonna have to stop you there." Erhard said. "I get most of what you're saying. But your gonna have to start explaining things you know I don't understand."

"Right. Sorry." I said apologetically. "Destroyers are the go-to ship we use for space-based combat. Rigs are basically mechs. Metals golems if you will. Industry uses them for mining and construction but the military use them as bulwarks 'cause there's not a whole lot that can take down a thirty-foot tall armored giant."

"Then what are they doing in the armor? If you're saying they shouldn't be possible for it to work, than what are they?"

"My people have long since learned to be hesitant with the word impossible. If they are resonators than that confirms my suspicion about the tech-level of his world." I walked over to a table by the side of the room and saw the sketches Erhard had created and began looking over them. The armor was similar to what I had envisioned, with the same angles and overlaying. On a second sheet was a sketch of the internal wiring on both the chest and other parts of the armor, but I noticed a missing part.

"Where's the helmet?"

"Never brought me one. Couldn't figure out a design for it." He replied.

"Why not just come up with one?" Asked Raphtalia.

"It's not that simple. With so many components and pieces that I don't understand, the best I could do is sketch a concept appearance. Past that and I really have no idea what I'm doing."

I looked back at the crystal on the table and moved to pick it up. I inspected the crystal a bit further and began to think back to my Prisma shield. The crystal was a bright blue, almost white. I summoned my Prisma shield and took out the crystal with my free hand.

Trying something, I placed the black crystal into the port where the prism came from and noticed the crystal began to glow. We waited and observed the crystal, watching it grow brighter and brighter. After some time, I took the crystal out and immediately felt a weight difference.

The crystal felt a good few grams heavier, something that I wasn't expecting. I placed the crystal back into the port and saw energy run through the gold and into the plates.

Erhard and I jumped back after electricity began to arc over the armor. It concentrated around the plates before dissipating altogether. A blue glow then took over the plates and wiring.

'Definitely resonators.'

I walked over to the plates and tapped them. An array of shapes appeared under my finger. It was similar to the pattern my light shield generated, only much smaller.

"I wonder…" I said out loud. Erhard looked at me with a raised eyebrow. His quizzical look quickly changed to panic when raised fist.

"What are you-!?" He was cut off by me striking the chest piece. Another array appeared where I struck the piece, but the pieces were far larger. Pain erupted through my hand and arm at the strike. I pulled my hand back and started shaking it.

"You all right?" Erhard asked, noticing my pained expression.

"Yeah, I'm good now." I said, letting my hand fall to my side. "Felt like I just punched solid steel." I looked back at the armor and noticed the glow had dimmed considerably. The crystal, though once a dark purple, was now a dull blue.

'And thus the problem all technology faces.'

"Explains why it's a prototype at least." I said.

"What part of that explained why it was a prototype!?" Luna yelled. "You look like you almost broke your hand!"

"It's energy consumption." Said Erhard. "That strike pretty much drained the crystal. It'd work well with a constant flow but with only one source of power, it'll run out too quickly to be of use."

I looked at Erhard with a raised eyebrow.

'Since when did he figure that out?'

"Am I right?" Erhard asked, looking at me.

"Spot on." I said with a pleasant surprise. We looked back at the armor and inspected it further. "When did you figure that kind of stuff out?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Like I said. It's interesting when I can understand what your saying." He said with a smile.

I chuckled and shook my head.

"Now the question is, what are we going to do with it?" Asked Phobos. "Are we gonna take it apart to try and build others like it?"

The other three perked up, excited at the prospect of having armor like this.

"Not yet. We don't have the materials to build anymore right now. And even if we did, we don't have any way of powering them. I'm sure we'll find something in one of the vaults. Once we find them anyway."

"No disrespect, but we've been looking for these vaults for almost a month now. Are you really sure they even exist?" Deimos asked.

I looked at the ground and let out a sigh. True to his word, the last month of searching had been fruitless. We didn't spread out very far, but that knowledge certainly didn't make things easier.

"I'm certain. We're just missing something. We have to be." I said while pacing. My hand went up to my chin. The others talked amongst themselves, trying to think of what it could be. I thought over everything we had encountered thus far. My thoughts ran through everything but always came back to something.

The Prism.

I subconsciously squinted, thinking of what the strange item could be related to. I had messed around with it during our time in Riyute and discovered that with the absorbing of rare crystal directly into the prism, it would advance the shield. Aside from letting me control the light around it in new ways, it didn't do much. Looking at the intricate design on the armor, my thoughts drifted back to where I had found it. The cave. The spiders. The webbing.

'Maybe…'

The pylon.

I took the crystal out, and after I infused it into my shield, but I didn't do anything past that. My thoughts kept wrapping around what we could see. How the Prism fit perfectly into the stone. How it was in the center of the room. How I couldn't make out any other part of the cave through the webs. How the prism was dim when I found it, but glowing after the infusion.

'We missed something.'

I pulled my hand away and looked up wide-eyed. The realization was a smack across the face. We had picked the cache clean for all but the most important part. We looked right over it without a second thought.

"The pylon." I said out loud. Everyone looked at me. "That's what missed. We took out the crystal but never did anything after I absorbed it with my shield."

"You think the answer is back in that cave?" Phobos asked.

"Maybe. But it's worth a shot." I looked back at the others. "You up for a trip down memory lane?"

My party members looked at each other but steeled themselves. They looked back and nodded, a conviction in each of their eyes. "What about you Erhard?"

He looked at the ground, unsure.

'Right, he used to be an adventurer as well. Maybe I brought up bad-'

"I'll go." He said.

"What?" I asked, honestly confused.

"I said I'll go. Been a while since I've broken out the old armor." He said with a grin. "Now head on out. I'll be with y'all in minute."

We complied and left. Some time passed and Erhard walked out wearing a piece of armor over his current clothes. The metal and leather fit snugly on his figure. In his hand was a two-handed hammer about the same size as Phobos'. Strapped on his back was a small, leather knapsack.

"You were an adventurer?" Luna asked surprised.

"Of course. It's how I got my class up." He said while putting the war-hammer on his back.

"Why'd you stop?" She asked innocently.

"That's uh… Story for another time."

'Class ups…' Class ups were a part of the leveling system. Upon reaching level forty, someone looking to advance further would need to use the Dragons hourglass to pass the level cap. Unfortunately, the King will, or already has, put a law into effect that forbids me from using the Dragons hourglass to class-up.'Thats gonna be a fun…'

_*Break

We set out from the city with haste, wanting to get to the cave as quickly as possible. Erhard was on Phobos' back, having strapped on a temporary saddle he had laying around. It didn't fit right over the armor and would have to be taken off before Phobos could turn back into his human form but it worked for now.

We made it to the cave and dismounted. Phobos was happy to finally have it off his back, as Erhard didn't make a good riding partner. We decided to leave it by the cave mouth since we could just come back and get it. As we moved, I looked back into the woods, unable to shake the feeling that we were being watched.

I ignored it and we made our way through the tunnel. Suspended in the air next to me was the prism that illuminated the tunnel. Erhard had brought materials for a torch but we opted to save them for if we got separated. The light from the Prism was strange. It illuminated everything around us but wherever I walked, it left a white trail that glowed as well.

The party had been split in two behind me from the light. It wasn't, but it was certainly strange. We didn't encounter any mobs, no one's surprise. After all, we did clean house the last time we were here. Throughout the walk, I continued to look behind every now and then, unable to shake the ominous feeling.

We made it to the main cave and was greeted with the same site as before. Only this time, the skeletal remains of the Dimensional Queen were between us and the cache.

Its' body was resting in a pool of green liquid while the carapace of the legs laid in front of it outside of the drop. Around the edges was a green slime and the builder I had dropped on it was nowhere to be seen.

"Is that the wave mini-boss you fought?" Raphtalia asked. We had told her about when we had found the cache and what we had fought, but not every detail.

"Was." I said as I leaned near the pool. I picked up a small stone that was near me and dipped it in the green substance. I brought the stone out and saw the rock steaming and crumbling so fast I dropped it. In its place was the same green slime that was around the edges.

"Don't touch the liquid, it's the spider's blood." I warned them.

"What's so dangerous about it?" Asked Raphtalia.

"Highly acidic. Ate through my armor and gave me those burns on my left arm. The slime must be whatever dissolved by it."

The acid clearly wasn't reacting with the slime. The only materials that could do that are ones that were in a stable state, and to accomplish that, they would have to be fully reacted with or specially grown for it. That would mean that whatever was dissolved sunk to the bottom and kept the acid from melting further into the ground.

'Explains where the boulder went too.'

We walked around the pool and into the dark cave. With a gesture of my hand, the prism moved forward and began to glow brighter. Four other balls of light split off from the prism and moved to various places in the cave.

I walked towards the center of the room and grabbed the Prism. Bring it close to the pylon, I could see a heavy covering of dust and dirt on the surface, but some resemblance of lines. I ran my hand over the surface, wiping away the debris, I could see the surface more clearly.

Carved into the stone were breaks and channels. The piece that held the prism was separated by a ring.

I looked back at the others who had grouped around the pylon.

"Let's hope we're right about this."

I placed the prism into the pylon and we backed up. Waiting for something to happen. A second passed and nothing happened.

And another.

And another.

And Another.

I sighed in disappointment. "Dammit."

"Well, that's a letdown." Deimos said.

"No kidding." Phobos added.

I walked up to the pylon to take the crystal out but noticed something.

Above the crystal on the pylon was a small glow. It was faint, and I was barely able to see it, but it was certainly there.

"What the…" I said.

My hand hovered over the light, unsure of what to do.

I put my middle and index finger on the light, and a faint line energy flowed across the ring around the crystal. I traced it with my fingers, a far brighter line following.

I closed the ring and the light on the pylon spread out, flowing through the channels carved on the surface. They flowed the side and into the ground. A bright ring formed on the platform around us.

Everyone's eyes shot to the pylon, surprised by the sudden glow. We stared at the ring, curious as to what its purpose was. I looked back at the Prism and was met with a strange sight.

An image of the prism shown, suspended in the air at about eye level above the pylon. It was somewhat see-through, and around it was a three-dimensional grid of sorts.

'He didn't.' I thought as I grabbed the image and threw it to the center of the platform. The image opened up and expanded to encompass the whole platform. Thick struts of light moved up from the center, creating a pyramid around the platform.

Within it were multiple blocks, cylinders, and sheets. Most of them were light blue or grey, but a few were a bright red.

'He did.'

"What is this?" Luna asked, awestruck by the light show.

"Holo-field. Another thing from my world has too. They're a way my people would sort and interact with the information we find and create. Expensive though so you really don't see too many of them." I walked towards the center, looking through the items.

I pulled open one of the cubes and found design upon design for advanced weapons. Hard Light weapons, physics bending melee weapons, even ballistics and energy rifles. Some I recognized from the journal, but others I had never seen before.

The rest of my party began looking through other parts as well, skimming over designs but ignoring any writing they found, unable to read the language.

A second possessed armor schematics, while a third was specifically for shield designs. I collapsed the information, all the data returning its cubed form, and walked over to one of the red files.

I tried to open up one of the red data caches, but they wouldn't open up.

I was disappointed but undeterred. Moving to a blue cylinder, I put my hands on the top and bottom and made an unrolling motion. Inside were entries, each with a timestamp that read somewhere in the three thousands. I scratched my head, confused by it, but closed it and moved to one of the sheets.

I put my hands on the upper right and lower left corners and expanded it, an image becomes clear.

"Well, what do we have here?" I said as a smile crept up the sides of my face.

"What?" Luna asked, peering over my shoulder.

I walked to a side that was clear and expanded the image father for everyone to see.

I turned around to face everyone. "And now, we know where we're going." I said. Behind me was a map, detailed with every bit of information we needed.

Borders of countries that no longer existed, resource caches, vaults, factories, and hidden structures, each one with a wealth of items and information. The map blurred and glitched in areas, as new lines began to form over the old ones, lining out the new borders for the current countries.

But what caught my attention the most was a large, round structure labeled as 'The Well'. Judging from the map, it was massive, large enough to fit the entire royal palace in Melromarc, with the surrounding complex being as big as a small city. I was situated around the edges of the continent near the southeast.

'I'll have to investigate that, but I will when the time comes.'

I began to laugh with glee. I held my hands out to my sides and gestured them towards the Pylon. All the information collapsed with the pyramid and condensed into the Prism. It disconnected from the pylon, taking all the light with it, and moved to hover above my open hand.

'Heritage Series, Prism Shield advanced.'

'Data Storage gained.'

'Shield Projection gained.'

'This is gonna be fun.' I simply thought. I opened my mouth, ready to talk but stopped.

All eyes shot towards the spider carcass..

The body laid there, unmoving in the pool of acid.

Unsettled, I squinted, looking for anything not suppose to be there. I scanned over the legs but stopped when I caught something.

A piece of the carapace rested on its side.

Rocking back and forth.

'We were followed.' I brought my hand up, pointing up my middle and index finger, and gestured to move towards the carcass. We moved slowly and quietly, getting as close as we could to the carcass. When we were practically on top of it, Raphtalia charged left around the skeleton while Luna moved right. Deimos and I followed, ready to support them.

As we rounded the side, a cloud of smoke erupted, blinding us. I opened my eyes through the smoke, and could barely make out the shape moving in front of me.

"Stop!" I yelled. I ran out of the smoke but found myself looking back to where we came from.

'What the-?'

I turned around and looked back at the corpse. The smoke disappeared, revealing everyone in places that they shouldn't have been able to get to. They all looked dazed and confused.

"Get to the exit! We may be able to cut them off!" I yelled. Luna and Raphtalia charged first, being the fastest of everyone. Everyone else followed, hoping the two were enough to slow the figure down.

We ran out of the exit and found Luna and Raphtalia leaning against the stone or laying on the ground, gasping for air.

And the culprit was nowhere to be seen.


	7. The Second Wave

Chapter 7, The Second Wave

"Dammit!" I yelled.

"Calm down Kid!" Erhard said.

"Calm down? Erhard, we just got found out. They saw the map. They saw the hologram, and we don't know how much they caught or what they plan to do with it."

"Well, your the one with fore-knowledge! Tell us what they could do with that! Hell, you might even know who it was!"

I placed my hand on my chin and began thinking of all the possibilities of what could happen. "Well… There are four main scenarios for who it could've been and what can happen next. The first it was a random thief who followed us and was hoping to catch some easy money but didn't know what they got themselves into. But the gear and agility say otherwise.

"The second is they could've one of the Queen's shadows that were tasked with following me but were shocked but what they saw and slipped up. The gear and agility support this idea but their reaction may say otherwise.

"The third is it's one of the King's or Church's people, once again fitting the bill as well as why they ran, and are on their way to alert the King or pope. I don't know if they figured out I was the Shield Hero but assuming the worst, the last two options follow as such. Either the King will use it as more momentum to try and make my life harder, or they'll stay quiet and try to find the vaults themselves, assuming they caught enough of what I was saying.

"Where it doesn't is that they don't know what was on that map, nor are we sure they actually know who I am. Honestly, it may be something else entirely with how many differences there are between this world and the one I know."

I scratched my head, thinking of what else it could be but ultimately coming up blank for anything short of Ren getting curious and following us. I looked at the clock in my vision and saw the wave would strike in less than a day, too little time for the King to make a move with this information.

"Let's head back to the city. The wave is the day after tomorrow so we should rest up." I told everyone. We mounted up and left, the event still fresh on all our minds. I went deep into thought as we moved, thinking of what to do after the wave.

'After the wave, I'll have to fight with Motoyasu. With how big the power gap between us is, I could probably wipe the floor with him. From there, I'll be going around and cleaning up the other heroes' messes. With the extra month, I might be able to check out the vault in Melromarc as well.

We entered the city with caution, worry forcing us to check behind us in the bustling streets. When we had returned to Erhard's shop, I made sure to lock the door behind us and check the blinds before bringing out my Prisma shield again.

I pulled the crystal out of the shield and opened up the data contents again. It didn't create the same pyramid around us like the platform, but it did allow us to look through the contents individually.

The armor and weapons schematics it contained were numerous, but upon further review, many were still incomplete. What caught my attention the most was a blueprint for the direct advancement for my light shield, one of the few complete designs. From what I could tell, it would advance my shield through the heritage series.

The assembly was clear, with multiple edges coming together around a beefed-up version of the base light shield. Put together, the parts formed a diamond around the shield with a hollow area in the middle. They split at the center of the edge to expand into a larger shield.

Four conduits conjoined at the center around the gemstone under the additional plating. They seemed to be able to adjust the flow of energy within them, but as to why, I couldn't figure out.

To construct the components, we would have to travel to one of the vaults or factories stationed in Melromarc, but with the wave so close, there was no way we could get to one in time.

"Everyone," I said, bringing their attention to me, "tomorrow's the wave. Go get some lunch, I'll join up with y'all after I finish up a few things here."

Everyone except Luna nodded and left.

"So what do you got in mind kid?"

"You have anything like a sharpened blade strapped to a piece of armor?"

Erhard raised his eyebrow. "No. Why would I have that?"

I sighed. "Worth a shot. Well, how fast can you make something like that?"

"I'll have to pull an all-nighter and the odds you get it before the wave is low."

"I see. Alright, an idea for later maybe. After this wave, my party and I will be gone again."

"And why is that?"

"Some banquet after the wave. Kings gonna demand all the heroes come to give a reward. If the timeline holds true though, I'll get challenged to a duel and then cheated out of my reward."

"But this could be a chance to make up with the other heroes." Luna said.

"Doubt it. Odds that happens are low. Besides, they made it clear where their loyalty is." I replied bitterly, remembering the 'trial' from a month ago.

'Bastards.'

* * *

My party had returned to a nearby inn for the night. I had gone over the plan with them to make sure they knew what would be happening. I would be riding with Luna to Riyute village alongside the wolves and Raphtalia, but when we arrived, we would split up, with Luna and I moving in from one side the other three moved in from the other.

It was a pincer strategy, move in from multiple sides and force them to split their attention. With the Militia would covering everywhere else, clearing out the monsters would be easy. There were a lot of gaps in the defense however, making a full barricade near impossible. The best thing to do was pull back and retake Riyute. That way, we would deal with monsters in groups at a time instead of across multiple fronts all at once. Once there, I would create an energy dome around us and whatever part of the village I can get to protect the soldiers from Melromarc artillery.

I ran my hand through my freshly cut hair. 'Okay, this is happening.'

We were anxious that night, and the coming morning didn't help. We stood in our room, waiting for when we would be teleported to where the wave would hit in Melromarc.

'Problem now is what to do when we have to fight in other countries.' It wasn't only Melromarc. The other countries were facing the waves as well but didn't have one of the Heroes to fight alongside their troops. Fitoria should be assisting them for this wave and the next two or three, but after that, the Heroes will have to spread out to cover more ground.

'And if those idiots get caught up with the giant turtle, than it's gonna make my job a whole lot harder.'

I checked the timer in my vision and saw we only had one minute left.

"Everyone remember the plan?" I asked, putting my surcoat on over my armor and stuffing my cloak in my bag. Everyone nodded, putting their packs on. Luna hooked her mask to the front of her armor and left the surcoat hanging out of her bag. "Good."

I paused for a moment before continuing. "I'm proud of you, all of you. We've come a long way in only a month, but that doesn't mean this will be easy. Stick with your team, and we'll make through this just fine."

'I never was one for encouraging words, was I.'

And like that, a magic circle appeared beneath us. Our vision was filled with a flash of light before the scenery around us changed.

We were standing on a small hill overlooking a field. To our left was the woods we hunted in but to our right was Riyute village, with a large clearing between us. The sound of lightning above sounded and we all looked up to see a blood-red sky, illuminating everything with a red hue.

"Move now!" I yelled. The wolves changed forms and we mounted, making a B-line for the village. As we approached, I brought my hand up and gestured to my left. Raphtalia guided the two wolves off to the left, while Luna and I moved farther to the right.

As we approached, I could see a small horde of zombie-like monsters approaching the village with a few Militia soldiers struggling to hold them back. Their bodies were dark green and skinny, wearing old, rusted plate armor. Around them were giant hornets that flew ahead of them and into the village.

"Now!" Luna stopped and flung me forward into the horde. I changed to my dueling shield and brought it across a zombie in the rear. It fell down in two pieces with a heavy thud. The zombies near the one I cut down noticed me and began turned around, but most still moved towards the soldiers.

I spared a look behind me and saw Luna in her human form. She rushed forward to my side with her short sword and shield. We looked at each other and nodded.

I charged forward and swung in wide arcs, hitting as many as I could with each strike, while Luna weaved between them, cutting off decayed limbs as she went, and slicing oversized hornets in half.

I brought my shield down on a zombie, utterly crushing it, but didn't see the second coming up behind me. I looked over my shoulder, preparing for the blow.

Before the zombie could strike, a Militia soldier ran into my vision and bashed the zombie with his shield before slashing with his sword. He cut off the zombie's arm before cutting across the leg and finishing it with a strike to the head.

We looked around us and saw the hornets and zombies in our area had been cleared.

The soldier sheathed his sword and saluted me.

"Sir." He said, dropping the position.

"What's the situation?" I said, walking into the town with him and the other troops.

"Villagers were all evacuated this morning, most of our supplies went with them but we still have some on hand for after the wave. Monsters have set up in Riyute. We're taking the town back as we speak."

"And where's the Old Man Jax and the Wilson?"

"Don't know sir. Last I heard, he was leading Hardy's and some of Marks Division to take back the positions towards the outer perimeter. Eran is fighting in the center with his remaining troops to clear out the ones that broke through. Took some of our squad with him for back up."

'Good. Just like we planned.'

I turned around and faced the soldiers stationed here. There were about five in total, each with the standard sword and shield. "You five are to join up with us and help support the soldiers in the town."

"What about our position?" Said one of the soldiers.

"Melromarc soldiers are gonna perform an artillery strike on the village to try and wipe out everything here. You stay here, you'll get wiped out in the fire. I'll be able to block it but you need to be near me when it happens. Now fall in!"

"Yes, sir!" They all responded. The soldiers followed Luna and I into the village, taking out groups of monsters as we went, but it was slow. Each group was rather large and put up fierce resistance. It was certainly faster with the help of the soldiers, but Luna and I put up the most offense and defense.

I stabbed a zombie with my Voridus shield and forced the blades up, cutting through its' torso with ease. Bringing my foot up, I kicked the zombie back, hoping to keep the space around us clear. A way in front of us, I could see the other half of our party fighting alongside the main force.

The soldiers were fighting in a tight-nit phalanx formation, hoping to ensure none of the undead made it through. The brothers were both fighting outside of the formation, attacking wildly at whatever came near them. Deimos was dual-wielding his short axes, while Phobos was holding his shield in one hand and his hammer in the other. Both were used to devastating effect. Between them was Raphtalia, targeting the giant hornets that flew around them. Despite their efforts, many of the enemies were still making it past them and attacking the soldiers.

"Spearpoint formation!" I yelled at the soldiers. I changed to my dueling shield and began running forward, the soldiers trailing behind in a pointed triangle with Luna on my left flank. I changed my grip on the Dueling shield so that I was holding it like a spear.

I thrust m shield forward and impaled the zombie before lifting it above my and slamming it into the ground behind me. The soldiers behind me followed my lead, bashing the zombie in front of them with their shield before finishing it with their weapon.

"Surround them!" I heard behind me. I looked back and saw the other soldiers, some thirty of them in total, encompassing the zombie horde. The remaining zombies had been dispatched quickly with the soldiers now able to go on the offensive.

"Shields up!" I heard Old Man Jax shout. The soldiers all swarmed around me and brought their shields above their heads. I summoned my Prisma shield and brought it above my head. A beam of light shot out from the crystal, with three smaller, waver rays following it. The beam reached high into the air before coming to an abrupt stop and began forming a solid wall of light. The shield expanded sporadically, like a strange, semi-opaque liquid as electricity sparked near the center.

It moved out and covered the soldiers and many of the buildings near the center of the town. As if on cue, balls of fire shot into the air far away from us and all joined together above us. The fire sparked for a moment before unleashing a torrent of fire on us. Each flame bounced harmlessly off the shield, leaving ripples across the surface.

I grunted under the barrage, never having taken a hit against my shield like this. The flames ended and the soldiers let their shields down, relieved at not having to defend against that attack.

'And there goes those fire-resistant shields I made… I guess they could still be useful.'

I dropped the barrier and looked around me.

"Everyone alright?" I asked. Not everyone answered but those who did all responded as though they were fine. The soldiers near Raphtalia's group all looked unharmed as well.

"When did you learn to do that?" I heard Jax ask me with a gruff voice.

"A lot can happen in a day. Now…" I responded, looking off towards where a group of Melromarc knights was approaching. I gestured for Luna to follow but had Jax stay with the others. The soldiers seemed surprised by the sight of the Militia soldiers but smirked when they saw the shield.

"Well, if it isn't the Shield Hero."

"Hey dumbass, ever heard of friendly fire?"

"You seemed fine. Besides, we wiped out the monsters in this area didn't we?" He said as the grin on his face grew even more.

"I want you to know that out of all the insignificant pains in my ass this world has, I hate you the most." I would have continued but noticed the shadow behind him. "Oh yeah, he shows up too."

The grin on his face disappeared, replaced by a look of confusion. "What are you…?" He asked, turning around to look behind himself.

His confusion was replaced by horror at the sight of a zombie general. It was massive, standing almost twice as tall as any of us, ripped with decayed muscle, and armored with an inch thick metal chest piece.

It brought up its massive axe to crush whoever was caught underneath it.

'He's gonna be a pain later on… But better him than someone actually competent.' I thought as I charged in front of him and brought up my Tower shield. The ax came down quick but I parried it left. Not expecting the change, the monster stumbled forward, his head coming just into my reach.

I launched my armored fist forward and hit the monster square in the head. Its' skull broke where I hit, the face caving in around my hand. It stuttered back, its' screeches of pain cut off by Luna impaling her blade where I had broken its skull.

It fell back with a heavy thud as Luna landed in a role beside it.

"Now run like the cowards you are. You'll only get in the way." I said to the captain behind me. I changed to my Voridus shield and charged forward into the horde, the Militia soldiers running up to support me. "Push forward, take out anything left!"

"Ai sir!" They sounded. The soldiers charged forward against the horde, cutting down any and all monsters that came close.

"Box them in! Don't leave a single one standing!" I called out. The soldiers obeyed and pushed around the horde. The undead lines were forced back as soldiers came in from every angle.

"Goliath incoming!" One of the soldiers yelled. I looked past the line and sure enough, another giant was pushing towards the line. I rushed forward with my Dueling shield.

"Focus on the small ones!" I called. "He's mine."

I rushed the giant, cutting through the zombies that stood in my way. The monster brought up its rusted ax intent on cutting me in half. I sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the attack and punched at the legs.

The blades on my shield cut through the unarmored flesh like butter, snapping the tendons in the leg with ease. The bones snapped under the force as the leg bent at the shin and the monster fell towards the ground.

I sent two punches up into the torso, watching the giant's body shudder and stall before coming back down. I jumped back, avoiding the monster from falling on me. I walked over to the head of the general and looked down at it.

It looked back at me with a decayed face.

"You are one ugly bastard." I said out loud. I brought my foot up and crushed the zombie's head. Whatever parts it had left covered the ground under my boot with a crunch.

All around me, the last zombies were finished off. The soldiers cheered as they had taken back their homes.

"Alright everyone," I called out, "We've taken back Riyute but we aren't done yet! The wave is still goi-!"

Crack!

I was cut off by the crack of thunder. The ground shook from the burst and soldiers stumbled, not expecting the sudden shake. I looked up at the green whirlpools in the sky that released the monsters and watched as lightning began to arch between swirls.

I readied my shield, preparing for more monsters but a red slash burst cut through the portals with a boom that brought everyone's attention. It cut disappeared as fast as it arrived, followed by two more, smaller cuts but never appeared again. Cut in half, the portals quickly dissipated as the sky turned back to blue.

The soldiers looked around, not sure what had happened.

I blinked at the sight I had witnessed. Many of the soldiers began to cheer, some laughing at the sudden changes.

"Alright, we've won today!" Jax called, laughing a bit himself. "Move to help the wounded! We still aren't done! Get a messenger out to call back the others!"

As the old soldier gave out orders, Luna walked up to me.

"Alpha, we won!" She said but noticed my look. "Alpha?"

"Yeah." I said uneasily.

"Is something wrong?"

"Maybe." I said, still looking up at the sky. The crack of lightning, the slash of red. That wasn't supposed to happen. "Maybe."


	8. Shield and Spear

Chapter 8, Shield and Spear

"Easy soldier, I'll get you patched up." I said to a militiaman. He laid down on a mat set up in one of the intact buildings near the center of town that had been transformed into medical wards. Other wounded soldiers were laid out as well with a fourth third building acting as storage for a small amount of medical supplies brought up from the cellar.

Though there were fewer deaths than expected, the number of wounded was far larger. If it was some kind of trade-off than it as favorable for sure. Some and a potion or two and wounded soldiers would be up in just a few days.

Currently, I was administering aid with enhanced potions and lesser sealing creams to larger wounds. Luna was in the same building and following my lead, administering her first aid to soldiers with burns. Many of the wounded had now been treated with only those with smaller wounds such as lacerations and bone fractures remaining in the second ward. As I patched up the soldier, I couldn't take my mind off the end of the wave. The sight of the long red gash stuck wouldn't leave, no matter what I concentrated on.

'Things just keep getting weirder and weirder.' I thought as I finished wrapping bandages around the soldier's arm just as Luna was finishing her patient as well. We stood up and left the building but as we did a Militia soldier ran up to us.

"Sir. Melromarc soldiers are demanding to speak with you. They say it's urgent."

"Does it have something to do with a banquet?"

"Yes sir. But they're also having an argument with Jax over the medicine."

"Goddammit." I muttered. "Alright, take me to 'em."

* * *

We followed the soldier up to the front of the village. There, Jax was yelling at a squad of Melromarc soldiers.

"We demand you hand over the medical supplied you have! It's for the heroes!"

"The heroes have enough medical as it is! What about my men!"

"What seems to be the problem." Carter said, looking at the soldiers. The captain he was arguing with was the same one

"The Shield Hero." The captain said with distaste. "The King has demanded you appear at-"

"I'm gonna stop you right there." Carter said. "Not happening."

'Come on Alpha, we can use this.' I thought.

"But the king has demanded it!"

"I don't give a damn!"

They kept going back and forth. Jax had left a while ago, deciding to leave the yelling for Carter to handle.

"This is the last warning!"

"Or what? You ain't gonna do shit!"

"The King has ordered you to come! You are under law to oblique!"

"Well tell him he can take that order and shove it up his-!"

"Can we go?" I asked.

"Huh?" Both Carter and the captain said.

"It could be fun, come on why not?" I asked again. I picked up Caters hand and held it up. "Please?"

He looked conflicted for a moment, looking back and forth between the soldier and I. "Fine. We'll go." He said begrudgingly.

"Listen to you mut Shield Hero. She has the right idea." The captain said.

"Watch it." Carter and I both snapped. The captain flinched under the combined gaze but grinned and walked off.

"I really do hate him." He muttered.

"Don't blame you there."

He sighed and looked at me. "I hope your right about this."

* * *

'Why am I here again? Oh right, Luna.' I thought to myself. I was currently at the party celebrating our victory over the wave. The King had gone on about casualties being an absolute low, and sure-fire success, but I couldn't care less and by the time I started paying attention again, he was done talking. I had left my bag at Riyute as I would have little need for it here but brought some healing potions and cream for me and Luna both. None of our other party members wished to come so I told them to stay in Riyute. Odds where we'd be returning some time tomorrow morning.

The section of the palace set aside to house the party was impressive. Large stone walls and walkways made up the majority of the chamber, with glass panes and red curtains decorating the walls. There was a lower floor, an upper floor, and a balcony.

I had found a dark corner near a window on the second floor to keep to and hoped Motoyasu wouldn't come asking for a fight. Luna, by contrast, had decided to enjoy the party and was wandering sampling the food. She received odd looks from other party-goers but didn't bother with them. I passed the time by looking through my interface and reading through Johnsons logs and blueprints.

Logs that previously had been opened up to me, each with their own continuation or additions to previous entries. The first thing I went to were armor and weapon blueprints and was relieved to find more parts and components for more complex weapons, as well as upgraded pieces. Journals were the second, though, with so much that I hadn't gone through yet, I decided to save those for later.

Thinking back on the journals I read, it was rather interesting to learn about my predecessor through their eyes. From what I could tell, he had a rather rough start as well. He was summoned into a country alone, as expected, and went to work advancing their technology to better fight the waves. He met backlash fierce backlash, however. Many of the countries' rulers believed setting aside the vast resources needed for production and development would be pointless, and took some time to convince the country's leaders.

'But what happened for it all to just disappear?' I thought. I would've continued contemplating it if Luna hadn't come up to me with a plate of food.

"Hey Alpha." She said, taking a bite of a piece of pie on her plate.

"Hey Luna. You enjoying the party?" I asked as she leaned against the wall near me.

"Meh. The foods are good but I prefer your cooking." She sighed. "You know, you really aren't doing what I hoped you would. Don't we need the other heroes on our side? Wasn't that the biggest reason for trying to keep from getting framed? The least you could do is try to enjoy yourself."

"Believe me, I know it'll be better if we could work together. I'm just not sure we can. Especially after what Motoyasu did." Looking over, I could see a few people glaring at us but they turned back to their own conversations. "Besides. This place just isn't a happy one for me."

The other heroes were at the party as well. I could see Ren and Itsuki talking near one of the buffet tables while Malty was talking with Motoyasu. Their armor had all been changed and upgraded. Itsuki now sported a pair of khaki pants and a green tunic with light metal plates covering his shoulder and part of his upper torso.

Ren had opted to keep with his all black and dark blue color scheme. Over his open trench coat were black plates across his arms and torso. Over the left shoulder was a small series of spikes.

Motoyasu wore his red surcoat and silver plates. It was centered around the arms and legs with little protection over the chest. They were all a stark contrast to my own, which was more akin to full-body cover found on exo-soldiers.

I was about to continue talking with Luna but saw Motoyasu stand up from his chair and begin walking over to me.

"Oh boy, here we go." I said.

"What?" Luna said, turning around. "Oh boy, here we go."

"I did say it would happen."

"Carter." Motoyasu said. He didn't yell, but his voice carried, drawing the attention of most of the other party-goers.

"Motoyasu." I replied, trying to suppress my already growing anger.

"I hear you've procured a slave. Is this true?"

"I have." I said. "And no, I have actually treated her quite well."

"You sound like you were expecting me to ask that." He said accusingly.

"Gee. It's almost like I knew what you were gonna ask." I replied monotone. "Oh wait."

"Come on." Luna said, walking up to me and wrapping her arms around mine, smiling the whole time. "There's no need for that."

Motoyasu was taken aback by the sight before a thought crossed his mind.

"You must be one of his slaves." Motoyasu said. "Don't worry, I'll-"

"I'm not a slave." Luna said confused. "What would give you that idea?"

"But, you have to be!" Motoyasu said. "There's no way someone would willingly follow someone like him!"

Now it was my turn to start seething. The glow from my eyes returned for a moment, but I suppressed it.

"I was framed and you know it." I said to Motoyasu.

"Even if you were framed, you are still guilty of buying slaves. You said it yourself."

"If you knew her circumstances, then and now, you would have a remarkably different tone with me."

"That doesn't matter!" Motoyasu said. "We're heroes. We shouldn't have to stoop to such-"

"Shut the hell up." I said. "You talk like you have morals. Like you have dignity. But by the morning of the third day, you made it clear you have none of those. You're no hero. You're no hero. You're playboy who got himself killed after some walked in on you banging his wife."

I stepped forward and stood right in front. "I know what kind of person you are. Even if I didn't know about this world, I still would know about you. You're a narcissist. A selfish bastard. And most of all, a coward. You boast about your strength but the moment it becomes too hard or you don't get an easy win you whine and complain about cheating or going easy.

"This world will praise and love you now, but no mistake. The moment it realizes how useful you really are, it'll cast aside. By the people. By the nobles. Even by your party." I leaned forward. "And I will enjoy watching you suffer."

Motoyasu was still, his hand shaking while he stood frozen in fear. I don't know what did it. Maybe it was the eyes. Maybe it was the words. Maybe both. Maybe neither. But no matter, he stood there, staring at my eyes while sickening green stared back.

"We're leaving." I said to Luna, walking with Luna past Motoyasu who stayed in place. The guest parted ways as we walked, frightened back. The guards by the stairs stepped back as we walked down, just as fearful as the others.

"Wait."

I stopped. Standing at the stairs was Motoyasu, a look of pure rage on his face.

"You call me a coward. Say I won't fight tough battles. I'll show you." He held up a white glove and dropped it onto the ground. "John Carter, I challenge you to a duel. If I win. You must remove the slave crest placed on her!"

I glared at him. "And why should I? There is one person here I have something to prove too and she is standing right next to me."

I was about to walk further, but a pair of guards blacked me from walking any further.

"And it just gets worse." I muttered.

"I heard everything." King Aultcray said as he approached the rail of the balcony he stood on. "You truly are rotten to the core. So I order you, accept the challenge Motoyasu has made!"

"I told you," Luna said, "I'm not a-!"

Before she could say anything else, a pair of guards came up and grabbed her, with one putting a hand over her mouth. She kicked and struggled, but wasn't able to break free from them.

"Hey!" I yelled, walking over to the guards.

"Draw swords!" One of the guards yelled. The surrounding underlings all drew their swords and covered each of the stairways. There were twelve in total and had me on all sides.

"You poor girl."Aultcray said. "You must be afflicted with a curse that compels you to defend your master. Don't worry. Once Motoyasu wins, we'll free you from this curse."

Motoyasu walked down the stairs, standing right behind the guards, glaring at me. I returned it in kind.

"Heed my order, or I will take her from you by force."

"I hope you don't plan on disappearing." He said. I didn't respond. But I didn't hold back the eerie green that enveloped the space around me either.

* * *

It was dark and cramped, with weapon racks lining the walls to both my sides. I could hear the crowd cheering behind the door, no doubt convinced that this fight will be an easy win for Motoyasu.

'Motoyasu… ' I thought back over the brief conversation between us before he challenged me. My face contorted into a scowl.

"And here I thought you wanted the heroes to work together." I heard behind me. My head whipped back to see Ren standing by the entrance, peering through a slit in the door.

"What do you want?" I growled.

"I want you to listen to me."

"Don't waste your breath." I said, turning away.

"Carter I'm serious." He said, getting irritated. "What you're doing, the speech, the Militia, you're starting to cause panic between the nobles. Their worried you'll start a rebellion. And what was the green glow anyway? Half the guards that were around you collapsed after you left."

"And any of that concerns me why?"

"Carter, I need you to look at the bigger picture here."

"Like you?" I asked.

"Carter please, I need you to trust-"

"I did!" I snapped. "I thought I could trust you. I told you everything that would happen. Yet when the morning came, I was all alone. Even when someone, who had no bearing on what was going on, had his life threatened, you did nothing."

"But the Militia! If you keep expanding, the King will send troops against you!"

"Is that so? Then let them come." I said. "I'll cut down whoever marches against me, and let the Queen deal with whoever's left."

Ren was silent, not sure what to say. The slit closed and footsteps echoed past the door as Ren walked away.

'So the King wants to send troops… I'll deal with that when I get back to Riyute.'

Applause erupted from the other side of the door in front of me and I readied myself. The doors opened and I was met with a well-illuminated arena. It was square and stone with a sandpit making up the bulk of it. As I walked forward, I could see Motoyasu on the other end. His eyes were locked on me, a snarl plastered on his face as he ignored the crowd.

We stopped with a large portion of the arena still between us. I looked over the Royal box and saw Aultcray sitting there with Luna tied to a chair behind him. Malty stood on the side of the arena, laughing to herself. I sent a glare to the King that he returned in kind.

"This duel will take place in the presence of King Aultcray and the Pope!" Said an announcer. "It is thus legitimate and official! The victor will be declared if the opposing hero is pinned, knocked out, or admits defeat!"

Motoyasu and I both readied our weapons. He summoned a black spear with silver blades. The head of the spear was wide with the gem in the center. He bent his knees and aimed his spear at my legs. I summoned my dueling shield and mimicked his stance.

"Ready!" The announcer called. "Begin!"

And all hell broke loose.

I let out a war cry as I charged forward. Motoyasu took a step back in surprise, not expecting me to immediately go onto the offense. He steadied himself and brought up his spear up and charged to meet me in the middle.

He thrust his spear forward in rapid succession but I parried, throwing him off balance. I thrust the face of my shield and bashed Motoyasu in the torso. He stumbled back but caught his footing.

I ran forward and jumped, intent to bring my shield down on his head, but he rolled back, letting my shield embed itself in the ground. He recovered just as I pulled my shield out of the ground and he swung while I blocked, locking our weapons.

"Nice shield. Where'd you get it?" Motoyasu grunted, trying to overpower me.

"Save your breath!" I yelled as I broke the stalemate, pushing Motoyasu's spear to the side. With my free arm, I elbowed him in the nose. He staggered but I wasn't done. I grabbed his collar and pulled his head down and planted my knee in his gut, making him keel over.

With one last motion, I twisted my body and swung my whole shield, launching him back onto the ground.

He picked himself up and shook off whatever dizziness he had.

"I'll give it to you. You've lasted longer than I thought." I said.

Motoyasu growled and charged at me. "Chaos spear!" He yelled.

"Tower shield!" I yelled. Just as he brought down a flurry of attacks, they were stopped by the wall of metal that was my tower shield. The shield pushed against me with each hit but I held it in place, waiting for the barrage to stop.

I did, I went to work. "Voridus Shield!"

The mass of metal was replaced by familiar plates and blades. I pushed forward and backhanded Motoyasu with my shield before delivering a second punch to his ribs and a third to his face. He staggered back and I activated the blades on my shield.

Motoyasu went wide-eyed and began backing away further. I slashed continuously, while Motoyasu tried desperately to avoid the blades. The nicked his coat and sparked on his armor and spear.

"Just break already!"

"Never! Not until she's free!"

"You really think she's a slave!?" I yelled, his red and silver armor appearing more green by the second. I yelled and launched myself forward, planting my shoulder in his gut, and picking him up off the ground again. Planting my foot, I came to an abrupt stop, and sent a backhand upward, connecting with his chin. Motoyasu landed on his back but pulled his feet in, rolling back into a crouch.

"There is one person in my party who's a slave, and not have I used the slave crest on her!" I charged at him once more. "All my party members choose to fight by me!"

"Like I'd believe a word you say!"

He thrust forward and began swinging his spear in loops around his body, but his movements were sloppy and didn't carry the force. I swatted his spear to the side delivered a solid punch to the side of his torso.

One after the other, my armored fists pounded Motoyasu's sides, his arms useless to stop the barrage. Brining my fist up and back and moving my left foot out, I twisted my whole body into one last strike aimed for his head.

Before the punch could connect, I felt myself picked up and thrown to the side. I landed on my back but rolled back onto my feet. Looking towards the side of the field, I could see Malty with her hand raised and a look of panic on her face.

Shifting my sight back to Motoyasu, I could see much of the armor plating under his surcoat had dented or destroyed, breaking out of the cloth or forming obscure angles underneath it. His face and neck had become completely red and covered in veins.

He looked like hell but stood, glaring daggers at me. "I... Will not… Let you beat me."

"Accept it Motoyasu," I said. "You're beaten, battered, and broken. But you've barely put a scratch on me. You've lost."

"Maybe." He said. "But I still have one more ace up my sleeve."

He twirled his spear and embedded it into the ground. Black smoke oozed from the red gem as sparks began to form. Flashes of red lightning arced over the weapon, growing in intensity with each passing moment.

'No... He couldn't have gotten that already…' I thought.

The shape began to twist and deform. The once silvery metal had become dark and black. The blade had sharpened and blackened, with cracks forming from the gem, a red glow originating from between them. The rear end of the spear had become a blunt orb with a slight point at the end.

The white of Motoyasu's eyes had turned grey while the irises shifted to blood red. He took a step forward before entering a full sprint.

"What is the-!" Before I could finish my sentence, Motoyasu was already right in front of me, thrusting his spear forward.

'Shit!'

I brought my shield up, hoping to deflect the spear, but it continued forward over my shield and cut over my shoulder. I grunted in pain as the armor broke and bent into the wound. Motoyasu brought his spear back and continued with his own barrage of strikes.

I summoned my tower shield in the hopes it could block the strikes like earlier.

But that was a mistake.

Motoyasu brought his spear up and cut down, slicing through my shield. I watched in horror as the bisected pieces fell from my arm before shattering into light. The skill tree flashed in front of my vision and the icon for the Tower shield glitched before shattering with it. In my moment of surprise, I failed to see him ready his spear and thrust the blunt end into my gut. I could feel the armor around my stomach cave inward as the blow knocked me off my feet.

'How is he this strong all of a sudden!?'

I grunted and planted my foot and reached for his spear as he brought it up for another strike. I grabbed the spear just below his own hands, putting us in a stalemate. Slowly, Motoyasu began to push me back as if his strength was growing by the second. Looking in the corner of my vision, I could see my stamina bar was slowly declining.

'Is that spear taking my strength!?'

I pushed back against Motoyasu, hoping to rip the spear from his grip. As I did, green and red lightning began to arc between us and for a moment I could a second skill tree in my vision. This was entirely red, with each circle filled with the image of a corrupted serpent. And, for only a second, I could see the name of the weapon.

'Curse Series-Traitors Pride'

With my stamina all but depleted, Motoyasu ripped the spear from my hands and struck me across the head with the blunt end of the spear. I staggered and back towards Motoyasu, but was met with the blade of his spear slicing upward through my mask and across my face.

I fell back with a heavy thud, my strength all but drained. Blood leaked from the wound into my right eye and down my face. I tried to stand up but pain surged throughout my whole body and I was forced to fall back.

"The Shield Hero is no longer able to fight! The Spear Hero Wins!" said the King with pure joy. The crowd cheered for Motoyasu but I couldn't see how he was reacting. Letting my head fall to the side, I could see Luna struggling to get out of the restraints holding her down as a pair of knights undid them to bring her down.

Raising my arm, I looked where my shield should be. In its place, a green gem, embedded in the plate. I could feel it connect into my arm as if my shield had never left. I let my arms fall to my side as consciousness left me completely.

'He took my innocence… Took my strength… Took my shield...!' I thought. Anger surged through me, a scowl breaking out under my damaged mask. The image of Motoyasu, Malty, and Aultcray came to mind.

'And now they'll take my partner!' Swirling black pools took shape behind them. Slowly, there shapes organized and took a more distinct form. The shadow of a worm-like creature, many times taller than images I could see rose behind them.

'They took from you what mattered most.' It spoke in a dark, low voice. 'Take from them just as they took from you.'

The image changed, the same black water began to rise around them.

'Seek.'

The water rose higher over their heads, covering them completely and obscuring my view.

'Kill.'

The water surrounding them began to churn and shake violently as if thousands of creatures were swimming within the water.

'Consume.' I thought. The water dropped, and all that remained were skeletons.

'Warp Series Unlocked-Leviathan'

* * *

'He… Lost…' Luna thought. 'But he was so much stronger… How could he…'

She was forced up from her seat and dragged down to the arena. She didn't struggle, caught up too much in her thoughts to realize. Crater still laid on the ground bleeding while Motoyasu had been helped over to a place to sit while healers went to work on him.

'Why are they just leaving him there!?'

"Hey, what about Carter! He needs help!" Her cries went ignored.

"As per the agreement of the duel, the Shield Heroes companion shall now be freed of her slave crest." Said the announcer. A group of priests walked up to Luna, undoing the latchings on her plate and pulling down her shirt.

"Didn't you hear me!? He's-" She locked eyes with Malty. She was standing towards the back, besides numerous soldiers. Red hair, silver armor, and a black and blue skirt, just as Carter described. And plastered on her face was an evil grin from ear to ear.

"Your highness…" Said the priest. "She doesn't have a slave crest."

'Her...'

"What do you mean?" Said the King. "She must have a slave crest! Why else would she fight alongside the Shield?"

'She's the reason!'

"I'm looking right now. She has no slave cre-."

"You!" Luna growled. Everyone looked at the Shields companion. Her eyes were slits and her canines were displayed for everyone to see. "You're the one!"

With a burst of strength the guards never saw coming, she rushed, barely held back by the soldiers. She jumped back and slammed her shoulder into the first guard, knocking him onto the ground. The second tried to get a hold of her but she slammed her head up into his jaw.

He staggered back, holding his broken jaw while Luna focussed again on Malty. Luna rushed at Malty but three other soldiers on the field stepped out in front and rushed to meet her.

A burst of thick white smoke covered the area, concealing both Luna and the guards. The sound of weapons and feet clattering on the ground where dwarfed by heavy steps and shattering metal.

Suddenly, a guard flew out from the smoke bleeding heavily from the teeth marks that ran across his torso. Then a second was thrown into the stone wall, his legs mangled and broken. The third ran out from the smoke, fear etched on his face. He didn't make it far before Luna burst through the smoke as a massive wolf. The crowd went into a panic at the sight, everyone scrambling to get out of the arena.

Luna's front paw landed on the retreating guard, slamming him into the ground.

"What the Hell!?" Motoyasu yelled from where he stood.

"Motoyasu!" Malty yelled as Luna ran right at her. He tried to stand but pain surged through his body and was forced to sit back down.

Luna opened her maw, intent on crushing the princess.

But before she could, she stopped. Her body froze and ears twitched. She shifted herself to look at Carter. The blood had pooled around his head and shoulder and showed no signs of stopping.

'Carter!' She bolted away from Malty and straight towards the hero. She jumped, and in a puff of smoke was human again. She kneeled down beside him. She reached around his head for the latchings on his mask.

She tugged at the plate but it was caught. With another tug, she ripped the faceplate. The cut was worse than it looked, running under his right eye, across the bridge of his nose, and over the left. He was mumbling but she couldn't make out what he was saying.

She didn't pay it any mind. That or the small drops hitting splashing on his face.

She reached into her pocket, scrambling for whatever potion she had. "Don't worry Alpha," She choked out, "you'll be alright."

Guards flooded the arena. All the other watchers had run out in a hurry, leaving only the King, the Pope, the heroes, Malty, and the guards.

"Surround her!"

They guards encircled the two fighters, swords and spears all drawn and pointed. Luna tried to ignore, working faster to close the wound across Carter's head.

"Adva-!"

"Stop!"

The guards all looked over and approaching them was Ren and Itsuki, weapons drawn.

"Put away your weapons!" Ren commanded, stepping between the guards and Luna.

"She won't attack! Just pull back, we'll watch them1" Itsui followed.

"Sir heroes, you can't be serious!" Said King Aultcray. "We freed her from the slave crest and she attacked her savi-!"

"She didn't have a slave crest!" Ren yelled. "You heard the priest. There was no crest. She's following him of her own choice."

"Look at her." Itsuki said. "She's so worried about him that she's crying and doesn't even realize it. You can't get that from a curse."

The guards looked between each other and relented, trusting the heroes and putting down their weapons.

Ren sighed and looked back at Luna and Carter. The wound across his face steamed and burned as the potion Luna applied did its work. His skull popped and twisted, repairing the fractures and breaks.

It's a good thing he was unconscious. If the sound was anything to go by, he would be screaming from the pain.

"I hope you realize just what you're doing." Malty said, walking up to Ren with a scowl.

"Like it or not, we still need him. Alive."

Malty scoffed. "We'll see."


	9. A Feathery Acqusition

Chapter 9, A Feathery Acquisition

'Ow.' were the only words that came to mind. I began to open my eyes but could only one of them. Above me was a wooden ceiling that I hadn't seen before, either in person or memory. I looked to the side but was blinded by the light coming from a window. I brought my hand but felt a familiar weight on it. Looking at my arm, I could see my shield had returned but in its basic version.

'Good, it was only the tower shield.' I thought with relief. I looked over the shield, relieved to see its return, but was startled by my reflection in the silver metal.

Bandages had been wrapped around my forehead and over the right eye. My shoulder and stomach had been wrapped up as well. I ran my hand over them and felt they were indeed there.

I tried to sit up but felt something on my stomach. Looking down, I found Luna sitting in a chair asleep with head resting on my chest. Looking around, I could Raphtalia and the two brothers lying down with their own blankets across the floor. The room itself was small with a window on one of the walls and a door on the other.

'Didn't I tell them to wait in Ryute?'

Looking around a bit more, I found my armor stuffed in a corner with my backpack and mask sitting on top. It was mostly intact except for a large cut running up across the front plate. The metal had been contorted with the damaged area contorting inward.

"Hey, Luna." I said quietly. She began to stir and noticed I had awoken. "What happened? I thought-" I was cut off by her wrapping her arms around my neck, a quiet sob coming from her.

I put my hand on her back, attempting to comfort her. "Hey, what happened?"

She pulled back slowly, wiping away some of the tears that had formed. "You… We…" She tried to find the words to explain what had happened. She took a deep breath before continuing. "After the duel, you were bleeding.. There… A lot of blood."

"I see-Wait what about you? Weren't they gonna take you?"

Luna nodded her head. "Yeah but then they saw I didn't have a slave crest. I… Kinda went crazy after that. Think I put three other guards in here too."

I chuckled. "Nice one. How did I get here? I doubt the King would order his knights to take me to medical, let alone authorize it."

"It was the other two heroes. The King ordered his guards to throw you into a cell but the Sword and Bow Heroes convinced the King to bring you to one of the medical rooms. No medics showed up though so I had to handle patching you up."

She looked down.

"...Do you know what that spear was?" Luna asked trying to change the subject. I went silent, trying to think of the best way to tell her.

"Yes. Kind of… It's called the Traitors Pride, part of the curse series. It… Motoyasu wasn't supposed to have acquired a curse series weapon yet. That spear isn't even supposed to exist… Maybe…" My thoughts ran back to during my first days here.

'Motoyasu knew what he did when he backed Malty during my accusation. He knew he was stabbing me in the back.' My face contorted into a scowl. 'And now he possesses a curse series weapon for it. And a powerful one at that.'

I felt Luna put her hand on my shoulder and my scowl disappeared. I sighed, trying to figure out what had happened.

"Alpha?"

I looked over and saw Deimos slowly getting up. When he realized that I had woken up, he began to shake Raphtalia who was laying next to him and Phobos who was perpendicular to them. "Hey, Alphas up." He said as he began to stand up. The other two began to stir, awakening as well.

Deimos rushed over and wrapped me into a tight hug. "Deimos, too-tight too-tight too-tight!" I said as pain surged through my shoulders. He let go and stepped back with an embarrassed laugh.

"Eh hehe. Sorry." He said. Raphtalia and Phobos walked up as well, though they were more reserved than the younger wolf.

"You're finally up. Thank goodness." Raphtalia said, wiping her eyes.

"Good to see you back up Alpha." Phobos said with a smile.

"Thanks y'all, but didn't I tell you three to stay in Ryute?" I asked

Their looks of joy were replaced with concern. They remained quiet until Phobos spoke. "We did, but two days passed and we got worried. We came into the city and when we heard you were severely injured, we got over here as fast as we could. Luna told us what happened while you were passed out."

"How long was I out?"

"Three days. Cept for the occasional stirrings, you were out cold for most of it." Phobos said.

"Three days? My injuries couldn't have been that bad, where they?"

"We don't know." Said Luna sorrowfully. "I had to use some of the creams from the cave to close the wound on your head. It couldn't tell much but it looked like skull had been completely cracked. It was… Horrible to listen to."

'Damn. Good thing we brought it then.'

"Let's get these off you." Luna said. She began to loosen the bandages around the head. Once they were loosened, she slipped it off over my head and put it by one of the tables. Everyone flinched once the bandage was off.

Deimos whistled. "That is one hell of a scar." Deimos said. Phobos nodded to Deimos' comment.

"It's a little… rough though, don't you think?" Raphtalia said.

"I think it's rather dashing." Luna said, facing Raphtalia.

"Not that I'm complaining, but what exactly are y'all looking at?" I asked, unsure of just what was on my face, or, what was now my face.

"Oh, right. Here." Luna said handing me a mirror. I brought it in front of me and could just how bad the cut was on my face. It followed the cut I was given by Motoyasu's spear. It came up under my right, went through the bridge of my nose, and over my left. It was pale and rough, with multiple breaks and splinters in the tissue.

'Ok, that was way too close.' I thought, realizing how close I was to losing sight in one of my eyes. 'The wolves think it looks pretty cool while Raphtalia is a bit iffy on it. I'll take three out of four.'

"Well. Not the worst scar I've seen. But I gotta say," I said smiling. "Looks kinda badass."

We shared a laugh. We all needed one after the last few days. Especially them.

There was a knock on the door and it opened.

Ren walked inside, tailed by Itsuki.

It was then that Ren and Itsuki walked in. Itsuki seemed surprised that I was awake and taken aback by the scar across my face though Ren was rather indifferent about it.

"Oh you're up." Said Itsuki.

"What do you two want?" I asked bluntly.

"We helped you get this room didn't?" Itsuki retorted. "Doesn't that deserve some gratitude."

"That was after you let be framed, left out to dry, and watched me get my head cracked open, to name a few. You two still have a long way to go before you can even ask for gratitude from me."

Ren sighed. "Look, we needed to talk with you. The Militia-"

"No." I cut him off. "My men did more good for Riyute than anything Melromarc did. They defended the village while the soldiers just sent an artillery strike. If I wasn't there, it would've wiped out most if not all of the village and the soldiers there."

"But the King is worried that a rebellion will follow. He already knows your leading it and if you keep expanding he will send troops!" Itsuki said.

"He knows." Ren said. "I already talked with him about it."

"Then why are you here?"

Ren sighed again. "How sure are you of the Militias capabilities?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Strange question to be asking Ren."

"I'm not talking to the King, Carter." Ren said irritated. "I want to know what you can handle. We lost a lot of civilians in the fighting, regardless of what the King said. I need to know if your men can handle evacuation."

"... We're about one hundred strong, separated into three divisions. One for offense, defense, and evac. Enlistment was still going on so the numbers are a bit higher now but I'm not how much."

"Anything else?"

"Nothing I feel comfortable telling you."

"Come on Carter!" Itsuki yelled. "We need to trust each other!"

"Do not start that with me." I growled. Itsuki recoiled at the tone. "Take what you get and be happy with it. Consider yourself lucky I'm even bothering to tell you anything."

The blonde scowled and left the room, muttering under his breath.

Ren sighed for what had to be the third time. "It isn't a lot but it'll work for now." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a purple scroll. "This was sitting outside the door. Not sure who sent it but figured it was for you."

"Queen probably." I said taking the scroll. "And I got a feeling I know what for."

I opened the scroll and, sure enough, the queen's signature was the bottom.

"What's it say?" Luna asked.

"I can't read all of it but from I can, it seems word about my actions during the last wave had reached the queen and she opted to hand control of Riyute village over to me. I'm lost on the specifics but I get the idea."

'This is good, that means I can skip out on needing to race Motoyasu and basically just hand it back over to the chief… Naofumi didn't even have to race them did he…'

Ren narrowed. "Why would the mother of the girl who accused you of rape give you lordship of a town?"

"She's seen her daughter's bullshit plenty of times before. This is not different. And she'll back pissed after the next wave."

Ren narrowed his eyes but he didn't say anything and left without a word.

'Probably got everything he wanted. Everything he could anyway.

The silence returned with nobody really sure what to say. Tired of sitting in bed, I moved the covers and began swinging my feet off the bed. Luckily, I still had my pants on, though now I wondered who removed my other pieces of clothing.

"Carter, your still injured, you should stay in bed!" Itsuki said.

"Relax." I said as I started to stand up. "My arms and Torso were injured, not my legs."

I put my hand on my shoulder and began taking off the bandage.

"Hold up." Luna said. She undid something behind me and strap over my shoulder came loose.

"Thanks." I said. I unwrapped the bandage and set it down to the side next to the one that came off my head. There was scarring across my shoulder as well. The cut along my shoulder was far more rough and jagged than the one across my face and draped over my shoulder completely. Luckily, there was no scarring on my stomach, but that didn't mean internal damage didn't happen.

'Luna wasn't kidding when she said they just seemed to get worse.' I was about to say something but my stomach growled before I could. I looked up and pursed my lips.

"You wanna go get some food?" I asked my party.

"Are you sure? You only woke up a few minutes ago."

"I'll be fine. I recover fast." I said and I walked over to my armor. I picked up my mask and inspected the damage in closer detail. The pieces were jagged and sharp, far less clean then I initially thought.

Setting it down and picking up my chest piece, I could see the metal around the stomach had been warped inward. Even Phobos couldn't warp the metal with a single hit from his war hammer this bad.

I know. I checked. The shoulder wasn't much better. The metal was contorted into sharp strips like my mask but were far deeper.

'Those lacerations almost cut my whole arm off. Good thing they're clogged with scar tissue now but I don't think I'll be regaining feeling in those areas.' I ran my hand over my shoulder and truth to my word, I couldn't feel where my hand touched the scarring.

"Were you really wearing that?" Deimos asked with unease at seeing the damage.

"Yep. Felt like hell." I said picking up my shirt and inspecting it.

There was a small bit of patch workover where the holes should've been, something I was rather thankful for. Shrugging, I tried putting my shirt on but pain surged in my shoulder, and I couldn't lift arm higher than my shoulder.

"Let me help you." Luna said, walking up. She grabbed the parts of the shirt and moved them as needed, getting them over my head while I pulled it down.

"How's that recovery going?" Luna said.

"Eh-shut up." I said, getting my straight. "Thanks."

"By the way," Luna said. I turned over to see her holding a basket with a blanket over it. "Raph and I might've already snuck into the kitchen and stole some stuff for food."

She took off the blanket and inside were some sandwiches.

"Huh, thanks y'all, they look really good."

"Well, I just helped steal the ingredients. Raph and Phobos put them together."

I looked up and over at Phobos with a small hint of surprise. 'They always were looking over my shoulder when I cooked. Guess they picked up on some good recipes.' We had made sandwiches a few times before but it was normally when we had leftovers to use and thought it'd be better to simply through those together instead of cooking up something else.

* * *

'Oh God, those were delicious.' I thought to myself. It was the first time in a while was actually able to taste anything, as even my own food didn't seem to register. We were currently heading down to Erhard's shop to get my armor repaired.

As we walked down, I received some strange looks but most people simply passed by with slight confusion. I was clearly familiar to them, but they couldn't figure out I was the shield hero with my shield moved to hip to make the weight a bit more comfortable.

'Problem is that now I have to handle their screw ups. I can't do much for that neighboring country, not at the expense of more pressing matters.' It was a harsh, but necessary. The vaults were the highest priority. We get them, we can handle the waves far better and with far fewer deaths. And with the Militia, even with a wave under its belt, was nowhere near ready for large scale deployment.

'We could redirect food to alleviate some of the towns. But a whole country? The entire food stock of Riyute would be consumed in no time. For now, our best bet is to focuss on growing here and help when we're ready.'**  
**

We approached Erhard's shop and entered. Everyone was quite happy to see him again, especially after what was probably a stressful three days for them. Erhard was standing at his counter, going wide eyed at the sight of me.

"Kid!? What are you doing here, I thought you were unconscious in the castle hospital?" He asked, moving out from behind his counter and up to us.

"What can I say, I am one hardy bastard." I said with a chuckle. Erhard laughed a bit as well.

"You certainly are." He said. "Let me see that scar of yours."

He put two fingers on my chin and tilted my head, examining the scar across my face. "That is one hell of a scar."

He sighed, a small frown plastering itself on his face. "How bad was the damage."

"To me or the armor?"

"Both."

"Mask has a massive gash going through it. Metal warped and got stuck in my face. Same with my left shoulder. The stomach plate was hit with a heavy blunt force. Plates destroyed at this point. Broke two of my ribs with it. Damn spear cut straight through magic steel like it was nothing. Even destroyed one of my shields."

Erhard looked at me and crooked his head, completely bewildered by what I had told him. "Your shield was destroyed?"

"Yeah. Tower shield at that. Defense rating on that thing is one of the highest I got but it was split in two like nothing."

Erhard looked down slightly. "Damn kid. And here I thought you were going to win."

"I was winning until he pulled out that damn curse series. First half of the match was an all out slaughter up until that point. Pretty sure I broke half the bones in his torso."

"...You had some pent up anger to work out, didn't you?" Erhard asked with unease.

I shrugged. "He had it coming. Besides, now I know for sure he willingly helped with that false accusation."

"And how do you know that?"

"The spear he used. Curse series operate on the principle of strong, negative emotion. Absolute anger and hate create the wrath series, large ego and praise went to the head creates the pride series, and so forth with greed, Lust, gluttony, etcetera. Motoyasu was using a pride series spear called 'Traitors Pride'. I think it goes without saying have much those two things seem linked together." I said handing the bag the Erhard.

He pulled out the armor looked over the mask himself. He grunted at the damage, knowing it would take a large amount of work to repair it. He set the armor down and asked if I could repair the mask while he works on the coat.

"Sure. Phobos, Luna, give him a hand." I said. Erhard looked back over to me with surprise.

"You taught them to forge?"

"Yeah, got a lot of practice too when we were forging about a hundred sets of armor. The pattern we used is similar to the one for that coat so they're familiar with the design.

"What about Deimos and Raphtalia?"

"Raphtalia could do some good work on smaller pieces but not so much for the larger pieces that need a bit more brute force. And Deimos just broke everything."

Raphtalia looked down rubbing the back of her head while Deimos just laughed nervously.

Erhard nodded and motioned for Luna and Phobos to follow.

I followed as well, picking up the mask while Erhard picked up the jacket. WE entered the backroom where he set the jacket down and began to disassemble it while I sat at a nearby table and went to work on repairing the mask.

"You sure don't just want to get a new mask? I built others with the designs you left me." Erhard said.

"I could buy a new one, but I've grown rather attached to it. And besides, I can always add some neat touch-ups to it. That and my cloak."

"You gonna keep the overall design?"

"Yep. Just need new plates and stronger metal. We'll get to upgrading the rest of my party's armor back at Riyute but this armor is still at its core your design. You and I know it better than anyone."

* * *

"You know, I expected you to do a patchwork, but this is definitely more along the lines of something you'd build," Erhard said as he looked over the mask.

I had done my best to replace the front faceplate but I couldn't remove it without taking apart the whole mask. To save unneeded work, I thinned out the base plate and instead bulked it back up with higher grade magic steel.

The leather underneath had been given a new layer over the original as well as it had been worn down and compressed greatly. Picking up the mask and putting it on, I was satisfied to have the soft feel of the leather return in place of the old, worn down straps.

As a little memento, I cut out a wide, shallow groove in the mask and filled it with magic iron. The greyish color was accented on the dark steel and followed the same cut as the one across my face.

"How's your end been coming along?" I asked as I set my mask down to the side.

"See for yourself." Erhard said as he laid out the armor plates.

The chest was redone from higher grade magic steel as well, giving a darker color besides the lighter arm and leg guards. The left shoulder had been replaced with a larger, darker plate.

A larger collar under the cloth around my neck had been added as well, giving better protection to the sides and rear of my neck as well.

"Dang, this looks pretty good." I said, admiring my party's handiwork. I began working on putting on the plates. It was comforting to have the familiar, albeit heavier, weight.

"I have to admit, you taught them well. Well, you taught Phobos and Luna well." Erhard said as he looked over the Raphtalia and Deimos had spent their time near the side of the room and only moved around when we needed their armor.

Admittedly I hadn't been much help either but I was still fairly injured so nobody could really hold it against me.

"Is that everything or…?" Deimos asked.

"I think so-shit Filo." I said looking off in a random direction.

"...Who?" Luna asked.

"Uh-Erhard," I said bringing his attention to me. "can you get a pair of tarps ready while I'm gone? And Raph, I need you to head tailor and get three small children's dresses."

Erhard nodded while Raphtalia just crooked her head. "What do you need three small child dresses for?"

"I'll explain when I get back." I said as I began to jog out of the building. "It'll obe quick!"

"Wait! Alpha!" Luna said, running out after me.

* * *

"You know you didn't have to come." I said to Luna. We were currently standing outside the slave traders tent.

"I know but you're still injured so I'd rather not leave you alone." She said.

I sighed. "You really should take a break. You've been looking after me for the past three days."

She grunted and looked away from me while we moved into the tent.

"Ahh, the Shield Hero!" Beloukas said as he walked into his office. "Tell me sir, are we buying or selling today?" He said as he eyed Luna.

She flinched under his glare and smile.

"Beloukas, you know I don't sell." I said with a flat voice.

"Oh, what's this?" He said. "The last time you were here, your voice was hostile. Have you finally warmed up to your friendly slave trader."

'Those words do not belong in the same sentence together.'

"No, I've come to make a purchase from your monster lottery."

"Ah yes. I don't believe I have to tell you how it works, or perhaps is there something more?" He said opening a case to the side of the wall to reveal an array of monster eggs. Each egg was white with a purple crest embroidered on the egg.

"You wouldn't wrong. I believe I have a proposition for you." I said leaning down to become closer to eye level with him. "You see, I receive a very important ally from this lottery, but I do not know which egg contains her."

Beloukas nodded and hummed with his hand on his chin.

"If I may add a little more to my payment," I said bringing out two gold coins, double the required amount. "Than it I don't think anyone would care if there was one less filolial egg within the crate."

"Oh, and do tell, where does this proposition end Shield Hero. Certainly you wouldn't pay two gold with simple Filolial. So what is it really?"

"You see, this filolial, in particular, happens to be a queen and one that will be vital in upcoming conflicts, both with the waves and Princess Malty. But you see, I believe this can benefit both you just as much as I. You see a dragon is no small prize, but a dragon and a filolial queen? Imagine what would word got around that such creatures could be won, even if they weren't the grand prize. The strongest of the strongest and richest of the richest would be crawling over each other for a chance. I'm sure in the hassle, no one would even notice as the prize increased with ever creature bought."

"So what do you say Beloukas? Do we have a deal?" I said, letting a grin form under my mask and sound through my voice. Beloukas smiled in kind.

"My boy, you are one surprise after another." He said picking up the coins. "I believe we do."

"Excellent."

Beloukas walked over to the eggs and let his hand drift over the eggs, picking out each egg from seemingly random places within the bunch. As he set them down on the table, the color of the eggs shifted and changed, becoming an array of different colors and sizes.

"These are the eggs Shield Hero, though which one is the queen's egg is anyone's guess." Beloukas said.

I walked up to the eggs and began looking over each of them. Picking them up and moving them around in my hands, trying to decipher which one it may be.

As I had gotten to the middle, I noticed a strange egg within the bunch. Unlike the others, it was completely white and somewhat smaller than the others. Picking up the egg, I began to look over it.

It was entirely free of marks of blemishes, with no other colors.

"I'll take this one." I said, surprising the other two.

"Are you sure sir? I had bought that egg for a lower price, the seller saying something about it being a 'defective egg'." Beloukas said.

"Positive."

'If I remember correctly, the only filolials with white coats were Filo and Fitoria. All the others were some other color of the rainbow, and if the shells are anything to go by for physical color…'

"Hmm, well I didn't question you before, I earned massive business for it, so if history is to repeat itself now," He said as he walked over to the eggs. "I see no reason to fight it."

He began to put the eggs back into the case, the colors and sizes all shifting back to what they were before.

"See you soon Beloukas." I said as I left with the egg in its incubator.

"I'll be looking forward to it. Pleasure as always Shield Hero." He said with a smile, no doubt thinking of the business to be brought in.

'I can't blame for that though, probably gonna be rolling in more money from the next week than I could in the last month.'

* * *

"Alright, Raph and Erhard should have everything. Let's head back and-" I stopped as I looked over the Luna only to her wide-eyed staring at me.

"You good Luna?"

"Yeah, just… Never seen that side of you before."

'... I guess I never really have played nice with slave trader with Luna around before.'

"Yeah but, you could see the smile he had after that right?"

"I didn't think you'd be the person to make a slave trader happy." She said with slight sadness.

"Only if it benefits me in the end. Make no mistake, I certainly want to cut him out as business partner but we still need many more things from him. You see, the market place always works on a set of rules, no matter the legality. Foreknowledge is an almost overpowered asset. When to invest, where to invest, when to buy and where to sell, when to advertise and when to keep quiet. Knowledge like that in my world can shift the odds in your favor by millions, even billions, easily."

"If my presence as his partner keeps bringing in the millions it already has, he's gonna be a lot more lenient in going out of his way to stay in my good graces. And with him knowing that I possess foreknowledge, he'll go to even greater lengths. In turn, that will make needed business with him more manageable on our finances, especially after the fourth wave."

"And that project is…?"

"The construction of a village near The Well. Or rather the reconstruction."

"Reconstruction?" Luna asked in curiosity.

I hummed and nodded. "I cross-referenced our holo-map with current maps of Melromarc. Turns out there was a village built on top of The Well but was destroyed in the first wave. Even if The Well wasn't there, I'd probably end up reconstructing the village anyway."

"And why is that?"

I paused. "Cause it was Raphtalia's old home."


	10. And We Set Out Once More

Chapter 10

"You didn't think to tell us about that earlier!?" Luna yelled at me. We had just left the slave traders tent and I was in the middle of explaining a very important part of my plan.

"Look, I only found out about it as we were heading back to Melromarc for the wave. I needed to make sure Raph was completely focused for the fight. I was going to tell her after the duel but I hadn't anticipated getting put in a coma for three days after the fight."

Luna looked away annoyed but seemed to accept my answer regardless. I was going to add more but decided not to.

"How good will she be?" Luna asked. "Our new fighter."

"Really good. She'll be able to transform like you and your brothers a few days after hatching, and without needing the Ascension skill for my beast Shield. Can take some of the weight off Phobos too, given how filolials have this thing for pulling carriages."

We walked back in silence. I thought over the things I know will happen.

'Let's see, we'll be passing by Riyute on our way out. We would've had to do a race for the village but with Motoyasu out for now and the letter from the queen in my possession, I should be able to leave it with the townspeople to shut down Malty… Right, cause after reading the scroll, she stopped demanding and instead challenged Naofumi.

'After that, it'll be the fight with the plant monster attacking some village. Can probably snag the seed before Motoyasu and give the people a tamed version of the plant. We'll have to head through and fight that dragon since Ren will screw that up.'

I brought up my map in status menu and began to look it over. There were two potential vaults we could visit. The first some ways out from Riyute. Close enough to be possible to travel to, but too far to still make it in time for the seed.

'Might be able to get the coordinates from the witch while we're here and pick it up on our way out. Might as well anyway should it come to that. But the second…' The second vault was in the mountains, not too far from some villages.

'But I don't know which it'll be. There's a chance we'll be too far out.' I paused in thought, realizing that at some point I would have to break the news to the other heroes. 'I can't tell Itsuki because God knows what he'll end up doing with it, and I sure as hell am not giving any to Motoyasu… And that leaves Ren. He's not irrational and I doubt he believes in the accusations. But if he decides to Lone wolf it, he may end up leaving a bunch of vaults open for everyone to come and loot… What to do…'

I continued to think about the risks and benefits. If I simply tell everyone about this, it'll be a total shit show, but if I have some backing from even one other hero, my chances of keeping an outbreak between the other three heroes will be greatly reduced.

But could they be trusted to begin with?

"The mountains it is.'' I said out loud, not realizing who had heard me.

"Carter?"

I turned around and was met by Ren. 'What's he doing over here?'

"Well, didn't think you'd be here."

Ren didn't respond to the question, instead of staying focused on my armor. Behind him where his party members. A few looked at me with caution while the rest seemed surprised but overall indifferent.

"Where'd you get that armor? Is it new or…?" Ren asked with genuine surprise.

"You remember that blacksmith from… That? Well, I made good friends with him over the past month. Turns out he's pretty good at his job. Throw in the fact that myself and two others in my party are damn good blacksmiths, we ended up getting all my armor patched and upgraded. Gonna upgrade the rest when we get back to Riyute"

I held my arms out, showing off the new set. The darker steel and additional plates over the green cloth and chest certainly made for a much more intriguing appearance.

"I give you the Militia General armor -proto. Now with higher grade magic steel and better shoulder coverage." I said with a grin.

"And I see it wasn't just the armor you upgraded." Ren said, pointing at his face.

"When friends of mine back in my old world would get one like this, they wore like a badge of honor. Lot of people who did." I said, running a hand the plate on my face. "Needless to say, that kind of stuck with me."

"What kind of friends do you have? I thought you were a student like me."

"Let's just skip the 'world explaining' and say shit hit the fan and we haven't quite cleaned up the whole mess. Everyones required to perform service in some form or another to earn citizenship. Non-negotiable."

"I… see…" Ren said, somewhat unnerved.

'Well… Guess he would from a peaceful world. Compared to mine anyway.'

"Where are you headed?" Ren asked.

"Heading back over to Erhard's shop. Just got a new addition to the party that I'm praying Motoyasu never finds out about but I know he will anyway." I said with feigned exhaustion.

"Why?"

I shuddered at the thought. "... You'll find out."

I shrugged it off. "But anyway, I'm trying to figure out our travel plan. I can't do much to help Itsuki and his inevitable screw up in, Kotoran…? I think that's the name. He goes somewhere and makes a bad problem infinitely worse." A thought came to mind. "You on the other hand though…"

Ren raised an eyebrow.

"Alright, during the month, you'll pick up a quest for dragon extermination mission. You'll win, but you'll leave the corpse lying around and send out a plague on the nearby village." I pulled out a book from my pocket and scribbled down a list of ingredients, along with my name. "This is the formula for an oil that burns very hot. Take this to the local apothecary, he'll help you make it. Get, eh-fifteen of it and take it with you. Once you kill the dragon, douse the body in it, that'll burn the corpse to a crisp and kill off whatever could be infectious. It'll be way faster than cutting it up and burying it. Thorough too."

Ren narrowed his gaze. "And why should I trust you on this? Unless you give us some coin, we'd be paying for the oil."

'How about you stop being a little bitch and let me help you clean up your damn messes.'

"I'm trying to help you here. You can either kill the dragon and get half a village, spend the better part of a day picking the thing apart and burning it in pieces, or get some of these, and watch it turn to ash in half an hour."

"My original question still stands."

"Alright. We'll treat it like a business deal then. You promise me to do this, and I can let you in information you'll want for the dragon. Loot specifically. Rare drop, practically legendary, you'd miss otherwise."

"And why did I miss it?"

"Because it's where you would never look. And no, you won't guess where it is based on that."

"Why would I trust that information. If it's legendary then why wouldn't you not go after it."

"Not enough time. I got my own list of things I need to handle and the amount of time it'll take to get outweighs the pay off."

"What woul-"

"Do you want the damn loot or not?" I said irritated.

Ren sighed and took the list and began looking it over. "Alright, I'll do it. Now what's that drop."

"Dragons core. Right at the center. Unless you want to go digging through its guts, then burn the body first, make a bit easier to get to. Feed the core to your sword and that'll unlock new abilities in the curse series. But there's a catch to them."

Ren looked up from the list. "What kind of catch."

"Cost really. The abilities are strong, unrivaled almost. The more you use the curse series, the heavier the toll it takes on you. I'm making a point to never use them, even with the powers."

"How bad are the drawbacks."

"It's gradual but it'll hit when it does. Put it to you this way, guy who was supposed to be the shield hero had a curse. Used one of the more powerful abilities and lost half the blood in his system. Spent the next three days in a coma and another five in recovery."

Ren looked down in thought. "You said you had other things planned for this wave. What were they."

"Can't say. Not yet anyway." I said.

"Carter-"

"Trust. Ren. You get that first, then I'll tell. Until then, don't bother." I sighed. "Well, I have to head. Wanna get back to Riyute before sunset to get my parties armor upgraded first thing tomorrow. Lots more material to work with than the blacksmith shops here."

"Can't you use the fast travel to get there?"

'Teleport…? Oh son of a bitch!'

"... Alright. I have a confession. Most of my knowledge of the future is based idle reading material and a series that still had episodes coming out and I keep forgetting what I do know."

"... You forgot about the teleport."

"I forgot about the teleport." I said. Ren looked down and began to laugh lightly.

"Half the shit that has happened was not supposed to happen. Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep track of all that?" I said, but Ren only seemed to laugh harder. "I remembered the weapon copy and the weapons crafting ability, that's two for three!"

"I don't think knowing sixty-six percent of the menu is a preferable amount." Ren said.

I grumbled, not able to come up with a good answer. 'Well… At least I can use the fast travel system.'

Ren stopped laughing, gaining his composure. "Alright. I'm gonna go get that oil made." Ren laughed a bit more as he walked away. "See you Carter."

"See ya."

* * *

"So… What's with the egg." Erhard asked.

I opened my mouth and pointed. "I haven't explained that to y'all yet." I said to myself.

"Alright, so here's how it is." I started. "Within this egg is a filolial queen. She'll be able to transform between human and filolial form without the need of my Beast Tamer shield. She'll catch the eye of Fitoria, the current filolial queen, which, depending on how we go about our business after the upcoming wave, may or may not save our hides at some point.

"She will have the personality and physique of a small child however, so outside of combat and pulling a carriage in her filolial form, she won't be too much help for a while. She'll also have the appetite of full grown filolial too so we'll have to hunt a lot more food than we would if it were just a new party member."

"You're gonna have her pull a carriage?" Phobos asked.

"Yes, my guess is her still technically being a filolial, she apparently loves to pull a lot of weight. Like, a lot of weight. But moving on, We should probably jump over to Riyute to check on how things are."

"Kid, it's a day's journey out and it's already getting late. You won't get there until late nightfall." Erhard said. I smiled in delight.

"You see Erhard, I would normally agree with you." I said leaning against the counter.

"What did you do?" Erhard asked with slight worry and exhaustion.

"Well, after a quick conversation with the Sword Hero, I have learned of a new ability we Heroes are able to perform that I totally just forgot about and didn't not know about before coming here… Moving on."

Erhard and the others began to chuckle at my lackluster attempt to conceal my gap in foreknowledge.

"We heroes are able to fast travel between places we have already been, bring our party with us. Do you know what fast travel is Erhard?" I asked but didn't let him answer. "It means we get to teleport!"

Everyone was laughing, taken aback by my sudden excitement.

* * *

'Now how does this work?' I thought as I went through my menu.

"How's that teleporting coming along?" Erhard asked jokingly. My party was currently grouped together outside of Erhard's shop waiting for me to figure out how to teleport us all. They all had their gear together. The only real visual change to the wolves was a darker color palette for the metal plates while Raphtalia sported her new, darker armor set as well. The sun was beginning to set on the city so everyone was rather eager to move now.

"Shut up, I'm figuring it out." I said back. I was looking through the menu trying to find the option that let me fast travel but was having limited success.

'Please tell me I'm just bad at finding things.'

Bring up my map, I was given an alert that said I unlocked the teleport ability and given a quick description. Looking at the icon for Riyute village, I was given the option to fast travel there.

'Of course.'

"There we go. Alright, everyone ready?" I said. Everyone confirmed they were and confirmed the teleport. A magic circle appeared beneath us and engulfed us in light, similar to the one that brought us the wave.

"See you soon Erhard!" I said before the teleport to Riyute finished.

The light around us glowed brighter until we weren't able to see anything past it. When the light died down, we were greeted with a view of the Riyute's town square.

"Hey it worked." I thought out loud.

"Who goes the-oh, Shield Hero, sir!"

Looking up, I could see a Militia soldier walking up to my party. He wore the standard armor but had the addition of a green cloth around the neck. It was clean and well cut, but still similar to mine. But there was one part that stood out even more to me.

"That you Ake? What are you doing here?" I said with surprise.

"Yes sir-wait, how do you know my name?" He asked.

"Foreknowledge-hero-stuff now what are you doing here?"

"Oh, I joined the Militia you had built in Riyute." He said with pride.

"Obviously. What I'm asking is why are you here and not with the Melromarc soldiers. You didn't stay back and fight with us during the wave so I doubt you were expelled from the military."

"... I left." He said looking down in embarrassment. "After the wave, I… yelled at my commander for almost torching the village and all the soldiers in it… After that, I took my crest and threw it on the ground. Left with my party right after since they all largely agreed with me."

"...Well." I said with slight surprise. "I always took you to be more of the 'puppy in soldiers armor' type than as a 'knight with the balls of a marine'. Props to you Ake."

Ake laughed nervously, not quite if he should take my as a compliment or an insult.

"Anyway, you have any idea where Jax is? I gotta talk with him about the next two months." I asked.

"Yes sir, he should be in his tent overlooking defense plans." Ake said pointing at a group of tents that had been set up near the edge of town. They were longer than wide, no doubt housing open cots and supplies. At the back was a slightly taller tent, though it wasn't nearly as wide or long as the others.

"Thanks Ake." I said before turning around to my party. "We'll be spending the night here but we're moving out in the morning. Go ahead and start getting some stuff together. Luna, with me."

While the rest of my party went around collecting whatever supplies they would need, Luna followed me to the tents where Jax would be. As I walked past, multiple soldiers stood to the side and salute before returning to their task, each wearing the same green wrap of cloth. We approached the tent and I opened up the flap. I was greeted with the sight of Jax with the other two division heads standing around a map.

"Jax, Wilson, Eran." I said, bringing their attention to me.

"Sir, your back!" Said Eran. He had short blonde hair, and was by far the youngest of the three heads with a pair of green eyes and a triangular face. He was however quite intelligent for his age and took a liking to defensive tactics with the backbone to command it. During the wave he had been tasked with leading the Marks division in taking back the village after returning from escorting the Riyute's civilians. His armor was the same Jax, however instead of a green cloth hanging from his right shoulder, it was wrapped around left bicep.

"Good to see you back after that injury, sir." Wilson said. He was the largest of the three heads, matching Phobos in terms of height and physique. His hair and eyes were both a lighter shade of brown than mine, and his face was a bit more aged with hard labor, though he was still quite young. While his talent in strategy was rather lackluster, his ability to rally troops was vital in keeping them at their best throughout the fighting. The cloth on his armor was hung from his hip over his coat.

"Good to see you as well. How has the village been these last few days?" I asked.

"All green so far sir." Jax Said. Outside of the wave, he had acted as head coordinator of Militia activity. "Soldiers are currently working on construction for a largery armory and forge while civilians are focusing on infrastructure, including that steel mill. Designated adventurers are helping pull in the gold we need for resources."

"Has construction for the Bessemer Cauldron began?" Before the wave, we had drawn up plans for expanding the village using resources pulled from the mine and woods nearby. Each building was a mix of Melromarc magic, Union industrial layout, and old machine patterns. One such pattern was the old Bessemer process for creating steel. The cauldron had transformed steel production, one of the great inventions of the industrial revolution.

It was modified to incorporate Melromarc magic, greatly increasing it's yield and efficiency. However, at almost two stories tall and with thick magic steel metal built with fire resistance spells to withstand the immense heat that would otherwise melt any other metal, it was not only a beast of machinery, but a bottomless pit of resources until it was producing metals of its own.

Smaller ones had been built that were only about four feet tall and acted as a short term solution, but would be nowhere near as efficient as the Cauldron we had in the works.

"Yes sir." Eran said. During the months, he oversaw and coordinated civilian-Militia activity. Though the Steel mill would be under control for the village elder, it would be owned by the militia, and pact as a means of industrial backing for the Militia. "Blacksmiths, architects and some local mages have already began building the struts and scaffolding for moving the pieces. But if I'm being honest sir, I don't even think Faubley has tried building a machine this big."

Faubley, one of the other kingdoms, and the most industrial and technologically advanced. While the other kingdoms were primarily medieval in terms of technology, Faubley was entering the stages of the early industrial revolution. Many of their soldiers had been outfitted with muskets and cloth uniforms. Though not very effective, it was still quite an advancement, and not very far from advancing into rifles.

It surprised me how many vaults were located within that kingdom's borders. I theorized Faubley was built over the remains of the previous Shield Hero and where he arrived, which if even a few early journals or binders had survived, it would be a technological boon for any kingdom that found them. I had plans in the work to go straight there following the next wave, but they were quickly dashed upon remembering about Keel and the two Lords.

'That's gonna be… Interesting.'

"No need to worry. If they followed the blueprints as I told them too, construction should go smooth. It'll take some time but that thing will be pouring out steel once it's complete. From there, we can start paying off the used expenses with steel exportation. We'll need to be clever about it though so we don't draw unnecessary attention.

"I'm more curious how you came up with that design." Luna said.

I however raised an eyebrow. "Didn't explain that the design wasn't really mine? All I added was the enchantments to the metal to increase the heat resistance and smelting power. The base design is some three centuries old. Also…"

I brought out the scroll I had received and handed it to Jax. "If you see the village Elder, tell him the village has been granted to me by the queen but he is to remain the primary overseer, and we'll just figure out what'll happen after the deal is finished later. If a certain redhead shows up demanding some ungodly tax, just show her this and tell her to piss off."

"Well…" Jax said, looking at the scroll and nodding his head. "Looks like the queen ain't half bad."

"No. She didn't buy into the rape accusation at all. She should have already sent the crown princess back to try and sort it out. Though… That's going to bring a slew of new problems." I said rubbing the one of my temples, thinking of the headache it will be to try and keep this problem from affecting Riyute.

'I'm gonna have to prevent an attempted murder, go on the run, kill a fanatical priest, and then decide if Aultcray and Malty are really worth the trouble of keeping alive… I'll figure that out when I get there. But for now...'

I walked over to the map and began examining it. We had marked down areas where suspected vaults where, but I hadn't updated it since then. Talk came up while we were taking care of wounded but we never got to marking them.

I summoned my Prisma shield and let the prism float above the table, shining the holo-map down on the written one. After looking through some of the journals, it was discovered that not all vaults were the same. They were divided by level of importance, marked by 'Minor', 'Intermediate', 'Major', and 'Absolute'. Of the upper ranks, there were only four Major's, each named Aspida, Spathi, Toxo, and Dory, with The Well being marked as only Absolute. Some of our guesses were close, though many were way off from where the vaults where actually located. The division heads, though surprised, had become used to me breaking out new surprises and quickly recovered. They each came up to the side of the rectangular table, taking in the new information.

"Eran, start marking down this new information on the map, it'll make planning in the future a hell of a lot easier." I said.

Eran nodded and went to work tracing out the light on the map.

"What's our plan until the next wave?" Asked Jax.

"Right now, I need you to focus on improving village industry and defense. See if you can get recruit some people, maybe even try to draw from some of the surrounding villages. My party is gonna work on keeping some of the villages North West of here from being destroyed. If we're lucky, we'll even get to a vault and see just what's inside. Depending on what it is, we may be able to start outfitting our troops with advanced weaponry."

"That'll be a load off our backs. But, I have to ask. What is this?" Jax asked, pointing at The Well. I brought up a cylinder from the prism and opened it for everyone present to see. Scrolling over the many items, we looked specifically for information concerning the super structure.

"Well… Ah-here it is." I said finally finding The Well. Much of the information was condensed behind the large red the word 'RESTRICTED'. What wasn't provided a good description though.

"Alright, so it's a power complex, that explains how everything operates, that does... something to distribute energy to the structures throughout the continent by creating a... world breach? To funnel for energy from… The Warp into a liquid state-what the hell?"

"The Warp?" Asked Wilson. "You have any idea what that is."

"I… Don't know." I said.

'I received that shield called the Warp Shield and thought it would grant me the ability to teleport in combat, but now…' Focusing on the word, I brought up a page that explained what The Warp was.

Or was suppose to anyway.

The journal was completely restricted. Every-word, no matter how small or insignificant, was covered behind long rows of 'RESTRICTED'. Panels that should have held images were blacked out and marked in red as Classified. What's worse was the information, even in its long rows, seemed to be missing pieces. Large gaps and spaces that seemed out of place existed throughout the entirety of the data.

There was nothing for us about.

'That's… More than a little unsettling.' I looked down at my shield and brought up my shield tree. I moved it around, jumping from spot to spot, trying to find the Warp Shield, hoping to learn if I had a look at the shield, but I couldn't find it either.

"Well… That's displeasing. Might learn something once we get to the vault but until then, we got nothing." I said, closing the journals. "What else do we have on the table?"

* * *

"Alpha, wake up." Luna said, shaking me awake. We had all elected to sleep at one of the inns nearby. With enough rooms open, we decided to buy three for the night. One for each partner set. Phobos, being ever reserved, said he would enjoy being able to sleep alone for the night.

I couldn't blame him, given my partner. There had been a few times she snuck into my sleeping bag during the night. The first time was a surprise but it had lost its shock value after about the third time. Luna was wearing a set of sleep wear she had asked me to make for her using the silk from my spider shield. It was a simple shirt and a pair of shorts but I had made sure the material was fairly comfy to wear. I made a pair for everyone in the party after that, including myself, but at the time I was too tired to put them on.

'Guess that wound really did take a bit out of me.'

"What is it Luna?" I said, slowly waking up.

"Look." She said, gesturing to Filos egg. We had set it down on one of the tables in the room and left it there for the night. Pieces had begun to fall off around the incubator as something began to push out of the egg.

I got up moved beside Luna to see Filo break out of her egg as a little filolial. She did some equivalent of a yawn before flying up and landing on my head.

"Aw, she must think you're her mother." Luna said gushing at the little bird.

"Yep." I said with a slight groan.

"What's wrong?" Luna asked.

"Well, make no mistake, I'm happy to have another companion for the party. It's just… I'm starting to realize just what I signed up for." I said, trying to look up at the bird on my head.

* * *

"How we looking?" I asked Phobos. He was stretching out in his new armor. The wolves armor had been primarily consisting of metal infusion and plating. Magic steel had been fused into the pre-existing plates, darkening the materials but not to the same degree as my or Raphtalia's armor.

Phobos, Deimos, and I had put the most additional metal into our armor and remaining pieces, bulking the plates considerably. Though heavier, none of us were anymore impeded than before. The plates on Raph's armor had been changed entirely. The steel plates, though designed to be as unobtrusive as possible, still impeded more fine tuned movements. Her torso, legs, and shoulders had been replaced with thinner steel plates that covered more than her original armor. Though not as thick as the iron, the higher grade material offered greater protection.

Luna's armor had the largest change, having gone with the second set of clothes the tailor had made for her under the armor. A similar black undershirt and pants. The armor had been moved over completely, with the slim metal and leather covering her limbs and torso.

My bag was on my back filled with everything I would need. Filo was currently sitting on my head. We had given her some food we bought from one of the farmers in the village and she had already gained a few pounds, causing my head to sink a bit.

Something that I caught my eye when first coming back to Riyute was the green cloths around the soldiers necks. As it turned out, at some point during my recovery, many of the soldiers had begun wearing a similar green wrap of cloth around their necks, similar to the one on my armor. The division leaders had adopted it into the armor, with officers having a white trim to their cloth. The rest of my party had picked up their own, wearing the green wraps around their necks.

'It might as well be trademark now.' I thought chuckling at it.

"Good. Just getting together the last few items."

I nodded and moved over to where Eran was. He was talking with some of the blacksmiths putting together parts that would go into the Bessemer Cauldron.

"Eran, what's the state of the parts?"

"A work in progress but moving along just right. Should be down a few weeks before the wave, enough time to get some more steel for... infusion into... our... armors… " He said looking at the bird on my head.

"I'll explain later." I said waving off his reaction. I had already had to explain four times before this and I didn't feel like doing it a fifth. Though tired, I thought over what he had told me. Sure we were looking good, but it was unlikely that nothing would go wrong.

"Stock pile some metal and begin infusing armors anyway. If something happens, I want to make sure we're still fit for the next wave."

"Will do." He was cut off by the sound of a rectangular crate falling down. The top came off and multiple hard foods, mainly potatoes and carrots, spilled out along with the cloth covering them. Civilians who were loading the crate quickly moved over and began picking up the food.

Eran and I walked over but before we could ask what happened, a familiar voice piped up.

"Watch yourself around Lord Itsuki!" Said a burly voice. He was big, standing taller than even Phobos.

"Itsuki?" I asked. Sure enough, he came around from the other side of the crates and looked at me. "The Hell are you doing here?"

"Your Militia was stationed in Riyute. I wanted to see it for myself." He said, completely unfazed by Filo.

"Mhm." I hummed. "If you're looking for gear, blacksmiths open to you. Resources are being devoted to industry building right now so they're a little strapped for anyone not Militia. At Least until we get our steel mills fully running."

He nodded. "What are you building to need that many resources?"

"I'll you what I told Ren. You want to know more, you earn my trust first."

"Carter, we're allies! We should communicate our power to better coordinate. Your military, you understand the enemy of my enemy is my friend.."

"Clearly, you don't know anything about military if you think that makes us anymore than acquaintances with something to benefit from each other." Just then Deimos walked up followed by the rest of the party.

"Hey, we're ready to go."

I nodded around. "Let me finish up over here first, then we'll head."

Phobos nodded and grouped up with the rest of the party.

"You want my trust, start with this. Do you know what crop rotation is?"

He nodded.

"Good. During the wave, you'll pick a quest to help some rebels with a corrupt government that's been overtaxing the people. Don't. Take down the rebels, without force, and teach them crop rotation. You manage to restore order there and not aovethrough the entire government. You do that, we can talk."

I turned back to my party and nodded. The triplets transformed into there wolf forms, leaving a surprised Itsuki and his party. I walked over to Luna and saddled up, making sure I was in line with where I normally rode.

"Your party members can transform!?" Itsuki yelled.

"Yep. It's awesome." I said moving out in front of my party. "Alright, you know how this goes. We make our way to the old mages lab and get that seed, deliver a tamed version to a village entering a famine, and teleport back to the city to drop off that crystal. Once we get ourselves some gear four our new companion, and start back up to the mountains where we'll meet up with Sword Hero to kill that dragon and make ways over to point Alpha. Now let's move!" I said.

'Now that I say it, once I get that tamed seed, food won't be a problem for Riyute at all either. And Koteran… If Itsuki doesn't have the famine solved there I can send a fixed seed over. It'll probably take a while for crop rotation to fully kick in but they'll have it.'

Luna turned around and started off in a light sprint, followed by the others. We rushed past Itsuki and his party, leaving them a bit surprised at how fast we were moving.

'We'll have to work quickly to get good with the trader, But… It just might work.'


	11. The Bio-Plant Part 1

Chapter 11, The Bio-Plant, Part 1

"Alright, we're coming up on the lab! Pack it in!" I yelled back to my party. The trip their had taken longer than expected. Though we left late yesterday afternoon, the sun was now beginning to set as we arrived. During the ride, I had gone over the mechanics of the teleport, having failed to do so earlier. One drawback to using it was the cool down, only being able to use it once every twenty four hours. As we moved, Deimos and Phobos moved closer behind Luna as we ran, creating a tighter formation.

'Wasn't this trip supposed to be shorter?' I thought to myself. 'Well, we're here anyway so no point in complaining about it.'

We dismounted while the wolves changed back to their human forms and we approached the entrance of the lab. It was a large stone gate way, cut out from the mountain side. The pillars beside the entrance were engraved with special symbols but I had no idea what they meant.

"What do you think?" Luna asked, Filo coming up next to her. Over the past two days, she had grown considerably, now becoming up to just above my waist. Her growth spurts weren't gradual however. Instead, there'd be a puff of smoke and all of a sudden Filo had gained a considerable amount of weight. She had also eaten all the feed we brought and would whine until we stopped to hunt something for her to eat.

'And why is she growing so damn fast? Even compared to her original rate, this is ridiculous.'

"We're only recovering the seed and it's pretty cramped inside so I'll leave you and Phobos here to look after FIlo. Raph, Deimos and I should plenty for this."

"Why not me?" Luna asked with surprise.

"Because Filo's taken a liking to you more than me now and God only knows what'll happen if that bird has another growth spurt while we're in their."

"You're sticking me on bird duty?" Luna asked as Filo let out a hurt squawk at Luna's words.

"Yes. Besides, I want to ask those two some things while we're down there."

"Ask who what?" Deimos asked as he walked up behind us.

"Speak of the Devil. You and Raph are with me on this one. I wanna check on some stuff with you two while we're down there."

Phobos nodded and got Raphtalia's attention, signaling her to come over.

"You two know what to do." I said, addressing Luna and Phobos. "There shouldn't be any monsters so don't worry if we take a while. Just make sure we don't have any guest."

The pair nodded while I began walking into the lab, Raphtalia and Deimos following me. As we entered, I brought out my Prisma shield and let the prism levitate, lighting our way in the dark tunnels.

The tunnels themselves weren't all that impressive, even as an archaeological find. The walls and ceiling were made sandstone, with strange murals covering the floor. Most of the chest and tables were barren, already looted from eager archaeologist or scientist, or adventurers either on a job or looking to make some money.

Some time passed as we walked before I began asking questions.

"How have you two been?" I asked.

They hesitated before answering, not expecting the question. They looked at each other and shared a look of agreement.

"We've doing well Master Carter." Raphtalia said.

"No problems here." Deimos followed.

"Good to hear. What about your fighting?"

"You've seen us fight together before Carter. Why ask?" Deimos asked.

"Because I wanna make sure what I see and what y'all intend are the same thing. I'm not displeased or anything, you've both been exceptional fighters, but I don't want problems to go ignored."

The pair seemed to accept my answer, and Raphtalia spoke up.

"Well, Deimos fights as the rook, keeping his shield up and defending the right side while I cover the left rear. If a strike coming in is too heavy for me to parry, I switch places with Deimos so he blocks the blow and I step in while our opponent is staggered."

"Same thing if I'm taking a heavy strike, 'cept I dodge and she attacks." Deimos added.

"And your twin axes?"

"I act like the berserker, drawing attention while Raph handle whatever gets behind me."

"Sounds about right, and what about relationship wise?"

"Relationship?" Raphtalia asked with a blush while Deimos raised an eyebrow.

"Not romantically Raph." I said rolling my eyes. "I meant as individuals. You work well as combatants, but what about as party members?"

"Why ask us that? I mean, we work well as combatants so there shouldn't be much of a problem, right?" Deimos asked.

"Things aren't that simple Deimos. Sometimes people grow strong relations in battle. Sometimes their ability to fight depends on how their relationship outside of fighting. Even before ending up in this world, I knew that bit of wisdom very well. My drill instructor made damn sure."

'Not just training with the Watchmen, but drone competitions as well. I wonder how that jackass William is doing anyway? Dude can write a crazy program but there were some days.'

They walked on silently, thinking over how to answer what they had been asked. Before they could answer, we came to a part of the facility that was far larger. Old tables and chest lined the walls of what was most likely one of the actual lab spaces. The hallway continued through, but I didn't know what came after, nor did I feel like spending more time here than we needed to. Looking in the corner, I spotted the chest that contained the seed.

'Adventures for later I suppose.'

"We'll finish this talk on our way back up. I just need to make sure the seed hasn't been taken." I said walking up to the chest. I opened it and was relieved to find the seed inside.

I let out a sigh of relief. "And with that, on to the village." I said picking up the seed. But as I brought it up I felt some resistance and stopped pulling.

'What the…?' Looking into the chest, I could a small green vine running out from under the seed and into a hole in the chest.

'Oh shit.'

Before I could yell to Raphtalia and Deimos, green vines began sprouting, breaking through the sandstone walls, each one going straight for us.

"Run!" I finally got out to them. They didn't need me to say anything, already making their way to the exit, cutting everything that got in their way. The vines were a light brown, bark light material, adapted for the harsh desert climate.

I yanked the seed, tearing from the root and following my party members as well, but before we could get out, the vine grew over the exit, blocking our escape.

"Down the hall!" I yelled to them, pointing back to the empty. They jumped back and ran, following me down the path. I moved the prism in front of us as we ran, vines erupting from the stone work behind us as we ran.

Soon, the vines stopped erupting from the walls and only followed us through the corridor. As we neared the end, I could make out a faint light. I glanced back at Raphtalia and Deimos.

"We're almost out!" I called back. I looked forward to the light in front of us, but the contrast made it looked bright white and blurry.

We ran through, coming to a catwalk above a well lit area. All around us was a layout of pathways like the one we stood on. Water ran through from one of the walls, falling into a network of tunnels below us.

"Keep running!" I yelled back, hoping to cross the platform. Just as we neared the center of the bridge, a massive green vine broke up through the platform. On it was a single yellow eye in the center of a pink flower. Along its sides was an array of thorns and extensions.

"What the Hell!" I heard Deimos yell behind me. Before I could give any orders, vines grew along the side of the bridge, picking it up and tilting it.

"Hold on!" I yelled to my party.

"Raph!" I heard Deimos yell. He had his hand reached out as the bridge began to tilt to the point we were falling. Raph grabbed his arm before we fell, Deimos pulling her close as we all fell.

I looked down into the water and landed with a splash.

* * *

Everything was blurry. I slowly opened my eyes, distant blurred images began to appear as I heard faint sounds and felt something on my face. As everything began to clear, I felt a clear pain in my lungs. I rolled onto my side and began coughing up water.

"Don't worry. I'm here." I looked up but couldn't see much. A light appeared and I could make out Raphtalia creating a light in her palm. It wasn't very bright, but it served well to light her face and the ceiling. Looking around, I could see we were on a small walkway by the water with a round ceiling and second path on the other side.

"Raph-" I grunted as I felt a pain in my side. My hand moved on its own and went to cover the side.

"Don't move too much, you were hurt pretty bad."

Gritting my teeth, I tried again. "Where are we? And where's Alpha?" I asked, looking around, but not seeing him.

"He must've landed in a different area than us when we fell from the bridge. That plant came down and started looking for us. I had to keep us under the water for a while." She said with a mix of worry and regret.

I tried getting up, grunting as I ignored the pain that flared through my side.

"You shouldn't get up." She jumped, laying me back down. I relented, begrudgingly, and let her. I caught my breath, the attempt to stand taking away what little energy I had regained.

"How long have we been here?"

"I can't tell down here." She said with sadness. "I tried applied whatever aid I had but…"

She didn't finish, instead looking at a small bag filled with broken glass and spilled material.

"Don't worry. It's fine." I said, trying to ease her.

"No, it's not."

"What?' I asked, somewhat surprised.

"Every time. Every time it falls between you or me, it's always you who gets injured." She said.

Tears began to roll down her face. "Every hit, every blow, every strike. You shoulder all of it, and it's always you who gets hurt because I'm not strong enough."

"You think that's why?" I asked, perplexed by how she felt. She at me in the eyes, surprised by what I asked. "Raph. I take those blows because it's what I'm best at. I'm not as strong as Phobos, or as fast as Luna. And God knows I'm not as smart as you or Alpha.

"I take those hits, because, out of all of us, I bounce back the fastest. I take those hits so you don't end up in the same conditions I do. That's what being partners means."

"Deimos…" Raphtalia said.

* * *

I held my breath, moving slowly, and waiting. Above me was a light, blurred by the water, but ever present. It moved in front of me, over me, and then past me, before disappearing entirely. I rose slowly, letting my head come out of the water and letting out the breath I was holding before taking a new one. I brought my hand up and rubbed my eyes, the old water irritating them.

Squinting, I looked around the passage way, and to my relief, didn't see the large flower of the plant.

'Alright, think. You're team is scattered, your alone behind enemy lines, and anything but stealth will most likely result in your death… You trained for this, you know what to do.' I thought, trying to calm my nerves but remembering one crucial factor.

'That's the Rangers! Not the Militia!'

I was panicking, trying to get my thoughts in order, and the ever present feeling of an angry, giant, man-eating cactus wasn't helping. I took a deep breath, trying to focus. I swam up to the side of waterway and picked myself up on the platform, careful to make as little noise as possible.

'Well, you've certainly done it this time.' I thought to myself, looking at the situation I was in. When I had first landed in the water, I got on the platform and started running, taking winding turns and obscure ways to try and through the plant off my path. When I had gotten a corner ahead, I jumped into the water and waited, slowly moving as to not be detected.

I sighed, raising my hand and looking at the seed I had snagged. It wasn't much. It was ripped off with a part of the root but wasn't doing much more than hanging uselessly.

'But it just might be enough.' I absorbed the seed into my shield and was relieved when an alert appeared, saying I had unlocked the Bio-plant shield. I summoned the shield and brought up the menu.

It was a simple design. Sprouting from the gem in the center two large leaves and two small leaves. The large leaves covered my arm and elbow while the smaller two added width to the shield. Four vines sprouted between the leaves, bending to follow the larger leaves, adding a strange flair to the shield.

'Bit different than I remember.' I thought to myself. Focusing on looks later, I began tinkering with the options, moving further down the pathway.

Now the question was what to make.

I had no idea what the shield allowed me to create. The most complex thing I could remember being created was a seed that grew temporary shelter, but it took some two days and the help of an alchemist to create. I was alone and had at most an hour before I was found.

Not wasting time, I thought through what I would need.

'To get out of here, I'll need to do three things. Find my companions, kill the plant, and get up to the bridge. If I end up going platform based, then I could probably go straight for the opening inn the cave ceiling. Killing that plant will be difficult, but combat orientation is certainly within the realm of possibility for a plant strain. The problem is finding Raph and Deimos and a way out of here.'

'We could get out of here without killing the plant, but we'd need to be fast. I could create a combat plant to create distractions but I won't know if it'll attack the other two if they come across it… Got it.' I thought, bringing up the screen to code the plant. It was a strange format but not something I was inexperienced in.

'Create a three base trigger. If it detects a bright light, none-tap based sounds, interval sound recorder should work for that, and a negative base if a wire is tripped. If even one of those isn't met, the plant won't spring. If they are, hostility will shoot up to one-hundred percent but sentience will remain low so the plant has no problem detonating itself.' I thought as lines of code began to form. Each one came together with every thought I had, adapting itself to fit where needed. To the left of code was an image of a plant that began to form with each new input.

It was a large, simple flower with multiple roots and no stem. In it's center was a container for a powerful enzymes that would eat anything biological. Once the code was complete, it fell under the 'combat' category, next to the 'Acid-Sprayer Strain', a version that, luckily, was already within my shield and wouldn't lash out at me or my companions.

'Platform is simple. It just needs to raise us up. Could probably create a simple two button trigger with a pair of leaves, the problem is the strength it'll need. It'll take some time to grow large enough to lift us, and I don't trust putting a high enough degree of sentience on this thing to lift us without trying to eat us. Might be able to use cancer-like cell replication and have even cells not at the outside multiply as well. I'll need to add some sentience to it so the plant can control the growth and support and not end up killing itself.' The code for this plant was far shorter, but the design was far more complex.

Fully grown, the plant would have wide stock and deep roots, with a wide flower using bark to support the petals and weight. A smaller extension came from the center of the plant which would act like a lever to control how it moved.

'Now to make something to help me locate the others… That's gonna be complicated.' I thought as designs are concepts flooded my mind, each one with it's own benefits and drawbacks, but all of them hinging on a complex mechanism.

* * *

Raphtalia grunted as she moved, supporting me with one arm while holding up her other, keeping the light that showed us the path in front of us. Her legs moved shakily while I walked with a limp. We had been moving for some time now, but were beginning to question if we were going the right way.

"We should rest here for a bit." I said out loud.

"I'm fine." Raphtalia grunted.

"You're tired. You can't keep this up for much longer." I said with concern.

"We just need to find Carter. He'll have something we can use. He always does."

"No. He doesn't." I said, starting to become annoyed. "He didn't know about the dog attack. He didn't know about the vaults. And now he didn't know about the Bio-plant sprouting. How would he have something for this?"

"We'll figure something out. We always do." She said determined.

"And what exactly can we do? We're a man down, maybe two, you can't do much and still keep me moving? Your exhausted and we don't know what condition Carter's in. He's still recovering from three days in the hospital and just fell from a bridge into a damn cavern. We're in deep here, and if we can recover some strength now, we should. We'll probably need it later."

I held my breath, hoping I had convinced her.

"Fine." She said reluctantly. She walked over to the side of the wall and set me down, propping my back against the wall while she slid down the wall next to me, completely exhausted.

"How long do you think we've been walking?" I asked.

"I… Don't know. Hard to tell down here."

We sat there in silence for some time. It wasn't until the silence became unbearable that I spoke up again.

"Why me?" I asked. Raphtalia was taken aback from the question.

"What do you mean?" She asked confused.

"You had Luna or Phobos to pick from. Both would probably have been better choices than me. So why me?"

"Phobos doesn't like having a mount."

"He says that but he gets lonely on longer rides. He actually does want a riding partner."

"And Luna already picked Carter."

"So I was the last option?" I said.

"No-that's not-!" She stopped when she noticed the grin on my face. "You're an idiot."

"Perhaps. But that didn't seem to stop you."

* * *

'Why won't you work!?' I thought.

For the past hour, it had been the same thing over and over. I would write a code, check the code, create a seed, plant the seed, and the seed would start growing, but quickly wither.

The design was supposed to send out vines with bio luminescent flowers that would pulsate in the direction of the center, leading to me, but would shut off if it detected something that wasn't me or my party, a piece of code I snagged from the 'Acid Shooter'.

What instead happened with this strain is the branches had grown out, aiming to start encompassing the cave, but quickly withered and decayed before they reached the sides.

I brought up the code again, looking for any faults, but not finding any. I opted to rewrite the code again, deleting section of it and replacing them with new lines.

'You are my creation. With intellect I have designed and magic I have built you.' I thought closing the code and creating a new seed.

'You are to follow my word as I have laid out for you to do so! Now-' I thought raising my hand with the seed.

'Work Dammit!'

* * *

We had started moving again, going deeper into the caves in the hopes of finding Carter. The light Raphtalia held was starting to dim, the constant use of her magic and supporting me putting a strain on her. Now it was only bright enough to light a few feet in front of us.

'This is starting to get pretty grim.' I thought.

"Listen, Raphtalia. I think, we should consider the possibility that…"

"Don't talk like that Deimos." She cut me off. "We just need to keep going."

"Raph, you're almost out of mana. If we try moving in the dark there's not telling what'll happen."

"Then we have to find him. Soon."

"We're not going to find him!" I yelled, shocking Raphtalia. "We've been looking for hours and we're almost out of energy. We don't know where he is, we don't know where we're going, and we don't even know if he's alive…"

I looked down, losing all hope. Realization hit Raphtalia hard, losing hope as well.

"...Do you really think so…?" Raphtalia asked slowly.

"I don't want to. But… I don't see anything short of a miracle saving us now."

Raphtalia looked down, not sure what to do.

'Now or never.' I thought to myself.

"Raphtalia. If we're... Going to die, I need to tell you something." I started.

* * *

I was speechless. Everything I tried, every strain, every code, every design.

They failed.

Any plant that tried failed miserably, not even reaching basic stages. Testing my other creations, they withered away as well, the dark area of the waterway not conducive to the plants growth. And with every plant a tried, the air grew thinner, filling it with more carbon and using up precious oxygen.

'Is this how I lose my companions…?' I thought, a green hue beginning to dawn the walls.

'Is this how I lose my life…?' The green hue grew brighter, anger and disappointment flooding my mind. The world began to grow fuzzy, the lack of abundant oxygen beginning to take its toll.

'I was suppose to protect this world… But I couldn't even protect my allies.' As the thoughts came through, the green light grew brighter, tearing away at the crumbling walls and boiling the stagnant water.

'No.' My anger spiked. The green hue became almost blinding, ripping away at whatever matter was around. Only my armor was spared by the phenomenon. 'I can't let them die.'

'So don't.'

In one motion, every bit of light disappeared, replaced by the feeling of pain, as if something was burrowing into skull. I fell onto my knees, numb from the pain, but as quickly as it appeared, it left, leaving me on my hands and knees, gasping as the air around me suddenly tasted fresh.

'That voice.' I thought. 'It's the same from the duel…'

Alerts began covering my vision, each one expanding into long lines of code, many times longer than anything I had wrote.

'What the…?' Looking into my Bio-plant shield, I found many new strains throughout the list, and even a new category, that they all seemed to fall as well.

'Elixi seeds? What are…' I shook my head, deciding to think about it later. 'What do we have to work with?'

Of the seeds I received, many were combat oriented, if the names were anything to go by. Corpse Vine, Tangle Weed, Seed Spitters, Bone Mouths, each name giving a vivid image for how the pants would dispose of anything it became hostile to. Many of them were darkened, locked out of use from me, but what I had what I needed. The long list of names continued until I found two in particular. Seeker pollen and Burrow Flower.

Grabbing the seeds, I planted them and, with glee, watched them sprout.

'Time to find my party.'

* * *

"What are you saying Deimos?" Raphtalia asked.

"There's... I need to… For a while now, I've had this feeling."

Raphtalia turned towards me, a blush creeping up on her face.

"Ever since the wave. No, a bit before then, I started thinking of you as more. More than a partner. More than a friend."

I struggled to find the words I needed.

"You mean…" She paused.

"Yes." I said. I looked down for a moment, piecing together the words that I wanted to say. "Raphtalia. I-"

I never finished my words. Her arms wrapped me my neck and pulled my head down. I felt something warm on my lips. She pulled back and put her head on my shoulder, softly crying.

"Why'd you have to wait?" She whispered.

The light in her hand dimmed behind my head, Raphtalia's magic running on fumes.

The sound of stone cracking filled the hallway all around us, but we didn't break the embrace as the light in her hand grew dimmer.

"...This is the end isn't it…" She asked. I didn't say anything, the light in her hand doing little more than to light my back. The shadows of roots lined the walls, the sound shifting and morphing filling our ears.

I closed my eyes as the lights went out.

But something else happened.

Slowly, new light began to fill the hallway, shining through to my closed eyes. I opened them, awestruck by what I saw.

All around us were large, cobalt flowers. Each one glowing a soft blue amongst the stone. Their centers each faced at an angle to the hallway. Smaller lights began to form in the air all around us, each light moving down the hallway and around the corner. Those that strayed became dark, disappearing from sight.

'What is this…?' I faced forward towards Raphtalia, who was just as awestruck. We looked at each other and realized who had done this.

"And you thought he was dead." She said with a smug smile, but relief evident in her voice.

"Then I guess it's a good thing I'm not smart one." I said with a slight laugh. I put my arm over her shoulder, her hands coming up my chest. "Let's go find our leader."

We began our slow walk down the path, following the light laid out by the flowers.

* * *

I fell back against the stone, relief flooding my system. In front of me was the map laid out by the pollen.

The Seeker Pollen seed grew into a large flower. It's blue petals opened up, a small grey ring surrounding an a dusty looking surface in the center of the flower. It released untold amounts of large spores spores that moved throughout the tunnels, covering every surface they came in contact with. As the large spores spread out, smaller ones had floated above the flower, taking the shape of the many bends and turns in a soft blue light.

The Burrow Flower seed left a small bud that created a vine, merging the base of the flower of the Seeker Pollen flower while it's roots cut deep into stone and dirt.

A long segment of the map pulsated as rings of light moving towards my position. They moved past me and into a larger open area that resembled an angular bowl, the pollen not reaching the higher parts of where we fell from. Moving down that path were two spots that move slower and glowed brighter than the surrounding pollen.

'I can't believe that worked.' I thought, a smile creeping on my face. Looking at the plants, a thought crossed my mind.

'That voice… No. I'll think about that later.' I got up and began heading own the path, moving in the opposite direction of the pulsing lights. 'Right now, I have to find my party.'


	12. The Bio-Plant Part 2

Chapter 12, The Bio Plant, Part 2

"Luna…" Phobos Said.

I ignored him, focusing on the rubble in front of the cave. The sun had set long ago and now the moon was high in the sky, bringing with it the cold night.

"Luna."

I ignored him again, trying to think of a way to get through the rubble.

"Luna!"

"What?" I finally answered back.

"You need to sleep. You've been staring at the rubble all night."

"I don't need to sleep." I said looking back at the rubble.

"Yes, you do." He sighed. "You can't think straight with the little sleep."

"John can." I mumbled, but just loud enough for him to hear.

"Your not Carter."

"I know!" I snapped, standing up. Filo Squawking in surprise "But what do you expect!? In case you forgot, we were just pups a month ago, and now we're this!"

"Luna-"

"I don't know what I'm thinking, what I'm feeling. I don't even know how I am! None us do!"

"I know. I'm the younger sibling of us two remember?"

"Then how are you so calm!?"

"Because I trust him. All Carter needs is that Bio-plant seed and he'll have everything he needs to get everyone out." He stood silent for a minute. "You really should tell Carter about it. What's going on with you."

"Yeah, let me just go and do that." I said, sarcasm dripping from the words.

"When he gets back. He'll probably have some idea about it. Besides, he's your partner, he should know about these things."

My cheeks grew red. "I'm not telling him!"

"And why is that?" He asked with a monotone voice.

"Because…" I struggled to think of a real answer to give him.

"See. You don't even know why you can't tell him."

"Shut up!" I grumbled, sitting back down and looking at the rubble. Phobos sighed as he and Filo looked at each other, one with exhaustion, the other with worry.

"Look. You said it to me yourself. You don't know what you're thinking. You don't know what you're feeling."

"Could be one thing, could be another. Just talk with him about it. Or let it guide you, see what happens."

"Yeah, and every time I do I end up sneaking into his bed when he's asleep."

"Still can't believe how many times you've done that." He said chuckling.

"Didn't I tell you to shut up?"

* * *

"Carter!" Raphtalia yelled, seeing me in the dark tunnel. She was supporting Deimos and sounded exhausted.

"Raph! Deimos!" I yelled back, relieved to see them. I ran over, and seeing Deimos, helped Raphtalia set him down on the ground. I looked over and found where the wound was.

"Hey Alpha." Deimos said equally exhausted as Raphtalia.

"What happened to you?" I said with worry.

"Hit the rock wall when we were falling, I think. Banged me up pretty good."

"No kidding." I said. I reached into my back pocket and brought some of the lesser potion and summoned my medicine shield. Enhancing the medicine I raised Deimos' head and began to feed him the medicine.

As the medicine worked, he began to groan in pain. A cold sweat began raging on his head, the pain no doubt being excruciating. I loosened the bindings his plates and undid his jacket to expose the wound. Raphtalia flinched at the sight. The bones were clearly broken, parts of the skin being pushed out in unnatural ways. Fortunately, the sight left quickly as the bones began to mend themselves, the open space letting them move more freely.

"Feeling better?" I asked as the bones finished mending.

"Way better." He said through breaths and sounded as if he was about to fall asleep, the medicine taking up whatever energy he had left.

"Rest for now. You'll need to for I have planned."

"Sure… Thing." He barely managed to get out before going unconscious.

"Will he be alright?" Raphtalia asked with worry.

"Depends on weather or not we make it out of here. We'll rest here for a bit. After that we'll follow the path once we have the strength."

"Will the plant find us?"

"Doubt it. From what I can tell, all it's sensory organs are sound and vibration based. The only real eyes it has are in the flowers. The pollen doesn't glow without the flowers command and the roots were barely audible. So long as that cactus doesn't go looking again, we should be fine. But just in case." I said, bringing up my Bio-plant shield. Placing my hand on the rots, I watched as the light throughout the tunnel dimmed greatly except for those immediately around us.

I let my back fall against the stone wall. "That should keep us hidden for now."

"Thank you Carter." Raphtalia whispered as she sat down by Deimos' head, playing with his hair. I watched the scene unfold and a thought came to mind.

"Did something happen while you were walking?"

Raphtalia stuttered, trying to fit the words together but couldn't get anything out.

'Huh…'

"Well, get some rest. We'll start moving once we're rested." I said, stopping her stuttering.

* * *

"We're nearing the end of the tunnel." I said back to Raphtalia and Deimos. We had woken up not to long ago and started moving down the path again. As we approached the end I signaled for them to stop but I kept moving forward. I put my back against the wall as I neared the light at the end of the tunnel.

Peering around the corner, I could see the area where we fell from. The cactus plant was tucked by the wall but was still. It's flowers were dim, with the eye's in it's center closed. Up it's center and across it's roots and vines were large, black thorns. At its base were smaller thorns, most likely less developed than the larger ones. On two separate roots were two smaller flowers. Reddish orange light came through the hole in the ceiling, meaning nightfall was approaching.

'Must be where the eyes are.' I looked behind me and signaled for Raphtalia and Deimos to come up while summoning my Bio-Plant Shield. I brought out the seeds for platform flower and a couple Acid Spitters.

"Raph, you see that area in the middle?" I said, pointing to the center of the cave. "I need you to drop these seeds, make sure this one is in the center while this six are near the edges facing the cactus."

I handed the seeds while I talked, making sure she knew which were which. The platform seed was larger and had a rougher seed than the smaller, smoother seeds of the Acid Spitters. "It's in something like a hibernation state. If we move quietly, we should be fine but I want a contingency in case we do need to fight this thing."

She nodded and put up her illusion spell to help conceal her should the plant wake up and look around. I moved outside of the tunnel careful to make as little noise as possible. Once in a more open area, I brought out three Seed Spitters and planted them. They quickly grew to about shoulder height. Their base and stem were a heavy grey with large, blue bulb where the flower should be.

The bulbs turned to look at me, opening up to it's strange blue and grey insides. Bringing out some of my trap seeds, I fed them to the Seed Spitters and pointed to different areas around the cactus monster.

'The shield says these things are incredibly intelligent.'

"Ready." I whispered. The bulbs of the plants inflated, sucking up the air around them.

"Aim." The plants shifted, moving to align with different areas around the cactus monster.

I looked over the Raphtalia and saw that the seeds I had given her had been planted and were already beginning to sprout.

"Fire."

The Seed Spitters began to shoot off their seeds, each at a different time than the other. Each seed shot had a strange white vapor-spore trail that hung in the air after each shot. Each shot took had a breath delay between them for the plant to suck up more air.

Each seed stuck to the rock side around the cactus before burrowing into and slowly sprouting small flowers from where they impact.

"Maintain fire." I whispered before gesturing to Deimos to follow. We moved quietly to the open area, the platform seed still burrowing into the ground.

"Alright, we should be-" I stopped when I heard a rumble. The Seed Spitters holding their fire. Slowly turning I could see the cactus plant had shivered, some of the stone around it coming loose, but the plant remained asleep.

We stood still, to scared to move for fear of waking it, but were relieved when it settled once more, falling asleep.

"That was close." I mouthed to Raphtalia and Deimos. They nodded, still wide eyed from how close our plan was falling apart. The platform had almost fully grown, leaving only the roots to finish. I motioned for them to get on the flower as the roots began to finish. I stood up and took hold of the extrusion from the center of the flower. Pushing it forward, we began to slowly rise up towards the ceiling.

As we moved, roots moved up from the base, grabbing a hold of the cavern walls to better support itself.

I turned around to smile at my party members but stopped at the sound of stone crumbling. Turning around, I could see the cave wall breaking apart where the roots had entered, a larger piece beginning to break off.

Thinking fast, I summoned my Spider Shield and threw out a web after web as the stone began to fall. Many pieces came close but were caught just in time to keep from falling..

I caught my breath, some webs still in hands.

'That was even closer.' Before I could say anything the sound appeared again. Looking around, I could see more stone breakin behind the roots, becoming more than what the webs could handle.

'Shit.' The webs snapped, letting loose all the stone it had been holding. It hit the ground with a heavy thud that filled the whole cavern.

The Bio-Plant shot awake, looking around the cavern before focusing on us.

We stood still, staring at the plant as it stared back at us.

"... So how have you been?" I asked.

It gave a deafening screech in response, our hands coming up to cover our ears. At the top of my vision a purple bar appeared with a name above it. 'Rampant Bio-cactus'

"Good to know. Open fire!" I yelled, the Acid Sprayers below us firing long streams into the cactus plant below us while the Seed Spitters began firing into the cactus with the trap seeds. Acid from the bio-turrets ripped into the cactus, melting the tissue. The cactus screeched in pain, not expecting either attack. It moved out from the rock, aimed directly at us.

'Bad move.' I thought. The Trap Seeds embedded into the wall triggered, shooting from the stone and clinging to cactus before sinking into the plant, the bulbs drilling into the cactus and bursting, wreaking havoc on its insides.

It's howls grew into a deafening shriek.

As it thrashed around, one it's larger roots melted away at the base, separating from the plant and taking one of the eyes with it. To my glee, the bar in my vision dropped more than a third of its length.

'That's one.' Not waiting any longer, I ran to the center of the flower and pulled the vine all the way, causing the platform to shoot up faster through the cavern.

"In the center, now!" I called. Our exit was smaller than the flower itself. If we stood in the wrong area, we be pressed into the ceiling and not sent through the skylight.

Before I moved, I looked down onto the cactus. It was wounded, and the acid that had been shot into it was still wreaking havoc if it's health bar was anything to go by. But still fighting, ripping multiple turrets out of the ground with its long roots. It looked up at me and screeched, pulling back two of its roots as more thorns began to sprout from the limbs.

"Air strike shield!" I called. The Ethereal shield appeared in front of Deimos and Raphtalia just as the Bio-plant swung its roots, sending a hail storm of thorns. They pierced through the flower, damaging much of the stem and cutting away multiple petals. The thorns directed at the pair bounced off the Air strike shield, but I wasn't as lucky.

The thorns impacted against my armor, unable to penetrate the enhanced steel, but threw me back onto the damaged petals. They gave way under my weight and I could feel myself begin to fall to the ground.

"Alpha!"

"Carter!"

I hit against the stone with a thud, knocking the wind out of me. Getting up, I could see Raphtalia rushing to reverse the Platform Flower but I stopped her.

"Keep going! I'll find another way!" I called up to them just as the flower hit the ceiling, releasing the pair.

'Now.' I thought to myself as I looked at the cactus. '... Oh, this such a stupid idea.'

I ran at the cactus plant, summoning my dueling shield and putting on my back. As I approached the edge of the platform I jumped, taking hold of the smaller thorns near the base of the cactus. They impacted against my armor and shattered, not as hard as the larger ones.

Grabbing one thorn after the other, I climbed up the stalk while avoiding the melted areas where acid still poured out. As I made it to the larger thorns, the cactus brought up one of its roots, intent to impale me.

I Swung to the left as the root came, narrowly avoiding it as it impacted, letting it impale the cactus instead of me. Grabbing my dueling shield, I brought it down on the root, embedding the blade deep in the skin.

The cactus ripped its root out and the shield cut it in half down the middle. The wounded limb pulled away, too hurt to attack again.

A second root appeared, this one with the eye of the cactus. Two more roots came beside it, covered in thorns. They began to pull back, ready to send a barrage at me.

'Now for something really stupid.' I thought. I brought my feet up between me and cactus, holding with one hand and keeping my dueling shield in the other.

With one motion, I kicked off the cactus and planted my shield in center the root. I landed some ways under the eye, but that was perfect. As the root thrashed around, trying to knock me, I cut deeper with my shield, intent to sever the second eye from the cactus.

When the root was almost severed, it changed its motion. Not prepared for the sudden shift, my grip loosened and I was sent upward back towards the main body. As I hit the cactus, I buried my shield in the stalk, holding on for dear life. I was relieved to see my stunt pay off as the second eye fell, severed from the main body and the creature's health dropped to a fifth.

Looking down, I could see I was now over the eye on the main stalk. It was searching frantically for where I was. I transformed my shield back to its default state and placed on my hip. I grabbed one of the thorns and snapped it off, feeding it to my shield. The shield tree appeared in my vision and alert came up that I had unlocked a new shield.

'Thorn Shield. This'll work.' I thought, putting my shield on my arm and summoning the new weapon. The shield was strange. It was a long, grey oval shape, with long back thorns stretching out of pores in the shield. The thorns themselves resembled more thick black needles than actual thorns. At the very end an indention in the shield with two prongs, similar to the spider shield but not as pointed.

I climbed higher up the plant until I was standing near the top of it, grinning the whole time. Leaning over the edge, I aimed at the eye, noting multiple smaller flowers jutting from the sides of the stalk in random places.

"Up here you damn cactus!" I yelled down, firing thorns down into the eye of the cactus. The shield made a heavy metal ping every time a thorn fired. It looked up, the thorns on the edge of its eye snapping against the skin. It screeched and the body began rising.

I looked up at the rapidly approaching ceiling and my grin dropped. 'This is gonna hurt.' I thought to myself, crouching as I summoned my Prisma Shield and deploying a small but thick energy shield over myself.

* * *

"What do you mean you left him!?" I yelled at Deimos and Raphtalia. They had ran up to where the entrance to the cave was, frantically yelling at us what was happening. One of the first things I took notice when they arrived was our missing party leader.

"He told us to go and that he'll find another way! We didn't have a chance to go back after we were already out!"

"And how is he going to get out-" I was cut off by the ground breaking apart from where Deimos and Raphtalia had run out from. Sprouting from the ground was a massive, green plant, the Bio-Plant Deimos and Raphtalia had been yelling at us about, and on top of it was-

"Alpha!?" I yelled.

* * *

'I'm gonna feel that one in the morning.' I thought, rubbing my head and neck while standing up from my crouch, the shield dissipating. 'And now for the finale.'

Leaning over, I summoned my Thorn Shield and shot down at the nearest flowers along the side of the cactus. The first few shots missed, but the last one connected, severing the flower. Acid exploded from under the flower and once again, the Trap Seeds needing to be manually set off with the condition they were set in.

The acid poured down, setting off more traps as it went.

Pulling out my dueling shield, I jumped from the top of the cactus. Before I passed the eye, I planted my shield in the stalk, slowing my fall and cutting deep through whatever it passed, the thorns breaking against my feet.

The shield hit the eye, cutting clean through, with less resistance than the stalk itself. But as I began cutting through the stalk again, my shield jerked and came loose, leaving me in a free fall. I tried to plant my shield in the cactus again, but only succeeded in pushing myself out further.

'Shit-shit-shit!' Thinking fast, I summoned my Bio-Plant Shield and sent the two front vines forward into the cactus. They connected, gradually slowing in how much they extended from the shield.

Before I hit the ground, I summoned my default shield, returning to a free fall state. Landing into a role, I finished in a crouch on the ground, trying to catch my breath after what I just did.

"Not doing that again." I said, standing up, looking on as the cactus fell backwards, collapsing onto the desert sands. Its cut and melted form echoing across the desert.

"Ah-Who am I kidding? I'd totally do that again."

"Alpha!" I heard behind me. I turned around to see my party running up to me.

"Oh hey guys. How did things go for-" I was cut off by Luna slapping me face.

Turning to look back at her I opened my mouth to ask why, but was cut off a second time by her wrapping her arms around me.

I looked between her and my party, not quite sure what to do.

"Two days." She said with a shaky voice, bringing our attention back to her. "It's been two days. And you almost got yourself killed again!"

'I mean… The duel doesn't really count… But I'm just gonna keep that to myself.' I sighed, returning the hug.

"...I'm sorry. Really. I hadn't… I didn't…" I went silent.

"Just, please," She said looking up at me. "promise me you won't do something like this again."

"We both know I can't do that." I said. She looked away, saddened and disappointed.

"But, I can promise this." I started, bringing everyone's attention to me. "I won't leave you. Any of you. As far as I'm concerned, your family. My family. We'll make it through this. The waves, the kingdom, and whatever else this world decides to throw at us."

"And what if you disappear? What about your old world?" Luna asked.

"I'll figure something out." I said, looking back at the cactus before looking back down to Luna. "I always do."

"I hate to break the mood," Phobos said. "But we've already spent enough time here. We need to move to the village before the spear hero gets here."

"You three go on a head." I said but heard a squawk. Filo had looked at me with an annoyed expression. She had grown to about the size of a full Filolial but still had a little ways to go. "You four go on ahead. We'll catch up. I just need to handle one more thing here. Think you can handle two riders?"

Phobos nodded, knowing that Deimos wasn't in the best shape and wouldn't be able to keep up with Raphtalia on him. As my party members left, I looked down at Luna who had yet to let go. I looked down at her.

"You know you can let go now." I said. She instead held on tighter, burying her head in my arm.

"Just a little longer." She mumbled.

I sighed, knowing it would be more than 'a little longer.'


	13. Trading Floor

**Chapter 13, Trade Floor**

"Hey everyone." I said to my party. It had taken us some time, but Luna and I had caught up with out party. We had followed the path and found them camped out by the road side some ways out of the desert. The first thing I noticed was that Filo had grown again, this time into her larger bird form. They already had a fire going and some food cooking over it.

From the cactus, I snagged myself an upgrade for my Thorn Shield and some new data for my Bio-Plant Shield that would let me grow them in a larger variety of environments.

'_The mechanics are a bit different, but I can work with this._'

"How we looking for tomorrow?" I asked.

"A lot more traveling. Should make it to the village in a few days time." Phobos said.

I sat down by the fire, Luna changing into her wolf form and sitting down beside me. Filo woke up and cooed at us before going back to sleep.

"Hey Filo." I said scratching her head before sitting down. "How's Deimos?"

"Asleep. He and Raph. They got some food and were knocked out right after." Phobos said. Sure enough, inside Filo's feather were two strange lumps. On the ground were a jacket, two sets of boots and gauntlets, and plates, along with weapons.

"Good. That wound may be healed but he still has to recover from exhaustion. We'll have a late start tomorrow. Let him get a good sleep tonight, along with the rest of us who were down in those tunnels."

"What happened down there anyway?" Luna asked.

"Old lab for some alchemist. Bio-plant got a root through chest and planted itself in the center of the cave. Our path got blocked so we ran the other way and found ourselves in a cavern on a bridge. Damn thing knocked the bridge over and we got separated. Deimos knocked into a ledge or something on the way down.

"It was all blunt force so his skin wasn't pierced but his ribs were pretty messed up. I'm amazed he didn't puncture one of his lungs. After that it was them looking for me and me trying to figure out this shield. It wasn't until I got my hands on Seeker Pollen that I managed to find them."

"Seeker Pollen?"

"Some special flower I received. Sends out clouds of pollen that I guess act like synapse nodes. Whatever the cloud sees, the flower sees. Using a second cloud, it constructs an image, kinda like when I use the Prisma Shield, except not as precise in terms of imaging."

"Received? Did someone give it to you or…?" Phobos asked.

"I… Don't know" I said looking at my shield. "I had tried and failed to make a plant I designed with the shield so many times that I just got… Enraged. It was so bad that the green light from my eyes started affecting everything around me. Even the stone work was starting to apart. Air was almost all carbon so it wouldn't have been long before I wasn't even able to breath. Then I had a… Last second 'not giving up' thought or something like that. About not letting Deimos and Raph die. Then I heard a voice."

"A voice?" Luna asked, concerned by what she heard.

"Yeah, it was deep and powerful. Like the ground around me was gonna shake with every word it said. It's words were 'then don't'. After that it felt like someone took a tent spike and hammer to the back of my head and all of a sudden. It stopped, I looked at my shield and I had access to so many plants to create. Things that don't even look like they belong on this planet. Weather that voice gave it me or not, I don't know. Strangest thing is it's not the first time I heard it speak." I said, rubbing the back of head.

"You heard it before?" Phobos. "When?"

"After the duel. Or really, when I was bleeding on the arena. It… Synced with me, in a way. It reflected the anger I felt then, when I thought I was gonna lose Luna. It brought me to this _place _and showed me something."

"What'd you see?" Luna asked.

I paused for a moment. "... It showed me Malty, Motoyasu, and Aultcray. Behind them was this shadow. It was massive, almost worm like thing, bigger than any living I've ever seen. They stood there, mockingly, then a column of black water rose from below them as it spoke. The water went torrent, splashing and shaking and then it disappeared… Leaving three skeletons… And a new shield from the 'Warp series' called 'Leviathan'."

The siblings looked down, not sure what to make of what I said.

"The shield..." Luna started. "Have you summoned it?"

"No. Don't know how. It's not like any other shield but that much was obvious. And I certainly have no idea what it is now." They were about to ask more but I stopped them. "Look y'all, I'd love to talk more but I honestly can't stay awake any longer."

"Well, can't say I blame you." Phobos said. "You and Luna get some sleep. I'll cover most of tonight."

"Aren't you tired?"

"Not at all." He said. "I got a full nights worth yesterday when Luna refused to sleep. I can handle it."

"Thanks mate." I said before laying out my own mat, Luna following my lead and setting hers down near mine.

'Thanks to that experience share, t_hat Cactus put us all at max level, with the only exception being Filo._ _With everyone else at the level cap, I'll need to figure something out to get us past forty before the next wave._' I thought. I laid my head down on my mat and closed my eyes. '_But I can do that tomorrow._'

* * *

"Alright, we're coming up on the village." I said to my party. It was nearing nightfall as we approached. Almost a week had passed since the Bio-plant. Filo still hadn't discovered her human form, something that was taking far longer than it should've.

We planned to rest at the village for a bit before making our way to get a replacement crystal for the Local Which in Castle Town. If worse came to worse, we decided to simply buy one from trader or miner and make a deal with her.

During the trip, I revised our travel plan and filled a small pouch with seeds. Reaching the level this early wasn't the most surprising thing. Most of us had already been within the low to mid thirties before the second wave. After the wave we were in the mid to high thirties afterwards, so it was only inevitable at this point.

Instead of making stop after stop at where we would need to be, we decided to make a run through each one, getting them marked on my map so we could then fast travel between them. It wasn't the greatest idea as we still had a twenty-four cool down between the teleport, but it was the only thing we had so far.

We would cut across the border and into Siltvelt, link up with their hourglass, get the class-up, and be back at the village with ample time to explore the vault. Border security would be a problem, however, I doubt there will be much as we're still a ways away from 'kidnapping' the second princess.

'_And the newest addition of 'sentences I never thought I'd need to say'. That._'

We'll need to have a good reason as to why we're returning to Melromarc afterward, but if they truly do worship the Shield Hero, it's a safe bet they'd believe me about my foreknowledge, and I can give them an explanation as to why.

"When we get in, we'll get some food and find a room. Tomorrow morning I'll speak with the governor and give him a modified seed. I'll streamline a new plan tonight that'll hopefully get us the class-ups."

"You really think we can get another stop in before the wave?" Luna asked.

I nodded. "Siltvelt should be on the other side of the borderline here. We'll need to make our way to the capital but once we find a town, we can probably get directions. After that, it's just a matter of teleporting back and forth."

As we arrived in the town, we could already see it was in a state of minor panic. People moved about quickly, trying to buying and selling their goods while the prices were still doable. With the lack of plant monsters over running the town, it was still well built, even if hectic. Large stone buildings with glass windows made up much of the architecture, a far cry from Riyute as many of the buildings were made from wood and stone. I even managed to spot a few adventurers from the Militia in the mix who saluted me as we passed.

'_I wonder how Riyute will look when I get back. The town seems to have taken well to my philosophy of ambitious construction. I might be able to establish a branch here and in Siltvelt after I get past the blockade segment._'

After some exploring in the town, we found an inn nearby and a stable for Filo. We went into the inn and sat down at a table, waiting for a waiter to come up and take our order. I left my shield on my hip in its Voridus Shield form. I wasn't expecting trouble, but it felt better to be cautious. Taking off my mask, I set it down on the table and let my bag lean on the chair.

Some time passed and a waiter walked up to us and took our order. She started asking people on the other side of the table, making her over to my side.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, if you wouldn't mind hearing me out, I'd like to offer you a job." I heard behind me. Turning around I could see some of my soldiers sitting at a table being confronted by a rather short man with orange and white clothes. He had a very round face with a small beard coming down to a point on his chin and a red feather in his hat.

'_Hickwaal._'

"Hey Luna," I said, looking across the table, "can you order for me? I gotta do something real quick."

She nodded and I got up and walked over to where my men were.

"I didn't know Militia traveled out this far." I said. The men recognized my voice immediately and stood up, giving me a rigid solute.

"At ease." I said. They sat back down and I looked to Hickwaal.

"You must be Hickwaal. Pleasure to meet you." I said to him, extending my hand. He took my hand and shook it.

"And who might you be?"

"John C. Carter. General of the Militia."

"Well, that certainly does explain these men's reaction. Though I must say, I never expected the general to be so…"

"Young? Well, stuff happens."

"Indeed. I do hope you don't have any problem with me hiring some of your men." He said smiling.

"I don't but I do have a request of my own. A proposition really. You see, I'm a bit of a business man myself, though my experiences are admittedly in a _less than admirable _field."

He began to take an interest in what I was saying.

"I'm looking for a business-partner of sorts. Someone who can assist me in both the acquisition material and information. I do not have any ties to the traders grapevine, but you do."

"And do tell, what do you have to trade for it? While a business partner with a sizable military force, and well disciplined soldiers from what I can see, would be quite a help, I still don't know very much about you or what you could supply, other than muscle."

"I'm sure you've seen it. The approaching famine in this village. Incredibly low prices on some good and high on others? Tomorrow I will be giving the village elder a special seed that will work to fix to encroaching food shortage. It can bear a rather unique fruit very quickly and with minimal maintenance. I can trade you multiple crates of the fruit, as well as a few bags of seeds. For the right price of course."

"And would you happen to have this seed with you? Don't misunderstand, I am quite interested in what you are offering, but I am rather skeptical of if you actually have this seed."

"I do." I brought out the bag of seeds and opened them. I took one out and handed it to Hickwaal. He brought the seed up to his eye and inspected it.

"These are some rather large seeds, and strange ones at that." He handed me the seed and I put it back in its bag.

"Well, they do grow a strange plant. Can I assume that we'll have a proper discussion?"

"Yes, I believe you will. Where will we be meeting?"

"The main government building. Once I have fund you both, I can give a demonstration of the seed."

"I will be sure arrive then. Good day General."

"Good day Hickwaal." I turned towards the Militia. "How many are in your squad?"

"Twelve sir." Said what I assumed was the captain. He wore a larger plate on his shoulder and a green cloth with a white trim around his neck. "The others are filling in some jobs they picked up in the village."

'_That may be enough to deal with the bandit squad, but it definitely won't be enough to loot the hideout._'

"Are there any other squads here?"

"Yessir. Two pairs and a trio, seven extra total."

"Good. If you take up his job, bring the men in the other teams with you, along with medical supplies. Set up for bandit attacks, you'll get hit by a pretty big group on your way. Apprehend them and have them take you to their base. Loot it for anything they got, it'll be good funding for Riyute."

The captain saluted and sat back down. Hickwaal was going to ask something but I cut him off.

"Did I mention I have some of my own information to offer as well?"

* * *

We ate our dinner and got ourselves some rooms. Luna and I were in one while Deimos and Raphtalia where in another. Phobos was on his own while Filo was in a nearby stable.

'_This is going to be interesting._' I thought with exhaustion. Before I could sleep, I started thinking about the voice that came two when I was down in the tunnels.

Of the two times I've heard it, both have been to give me new abilities.

'_But it is related to the Warp Shield, that's for sure. And with that in mind, it might be safe to assume that it's related to the warp itself. Everything past that is just speculation. Its spoken to me so it might even be sentient, but that's… It just doesn't make sense._'

I sat down on one of the beds. Luna was laying down on the other bed wearing her shirt and shorts. I had already changed as well, taking off my jacket and armor plating.

'_Maybe…_' I brought my feet up and crossed them on the bed. I closed my eyes, trying to remember the feeling I had when I was reached out by the voice. '_When I saw those images during the duel, it felt like I was actually there, not just watching… If I try and go back there…_'

* * *

When I opened my eyes, I found myself a dark place. The ground I stood on was illuminated by a circle of light. As the ring expanded, the edges darkened into black. The 'sky' was a dark purple but not pure black.

"Why have you come here?" A voice asked. It was deep, dark, and heavy, the same as the ones from before. The black space around the ring began to move and twist. Raising up was the shadow of the long, worm like figure, from the duel between Motoyasu and I. This time, however, I could make out a faint green glow coming from I assume is the head.

"I… Wanted to know who was speaking to me."

The beast said nothing. It moved in the dark, circling me.

"You are curious. You have questions you wish to ask. And many of them."

"...What are you?" I asked, certainly interested in what was around me.

"There is not a word in your tongue, only a general term, and a name, one given to me long before."

'_Was it Johnson? No. If it's related to the shield, it could be from a previous wielder._'

"And a smart one as well." It said.

'_Could it read my thoughts?_'

"Why can I not know your name?" I asked, trying to learn what I hoped for.

"You have not learned enough about this world, its properties, its history, or of the weapons."

"Then tell me."

"In time. But until you begin to understand these, you cannot understand what I am."

"Than answer me this at least. Every time you've spoken to me, you have given me something. Abilities and information either in the form of a shield, or as abilities for them. Why?"

"It is true that I have given you power, more so than you realize. It is why you and your companions have grown so fast. It is why that, even as you first arrived, your physical strength was already unmatched. And there is much more I can give to you." He said. I began to feel energy pour into me. With every second that passed, my strength grew, becoming unparalleled. "But…"

As the power grew, so did the pain. What first felt like a small burn grew into a raging inferno. I fell onto my knees, unable to withstand blazing sensation. As quickly as it appeared, it disappeared, both the sensation of power and pain.

"You are not ready for it. Slowly, you will grow, and learn to tap into it, and the ways to use it. But until then, you will only use what I give you."

Standing up, I held my side, the phantom pains still fresh in my mind.

'_Give me more power? Why would it…?_'

"Every ability I have earned has been tied to my shield. Tell me. are you connected to it, as you are me?"

"Connected to your shield? You are mistaken." It said. Slowly, it brought its head towards the light. Jagged points began to take shape along the edges of the shadow. Pointing down from its head was a pair of long needles. At the center of its black shadow was a green crystal.

"I am the shield."

* * *

I woke up with a jolt. I brought my hand up and wiped away a cold sweat that had accumulated on my head. Slowly I brought up my shield and stared at the green crystal in its center. The same that was in the head of that monster. The light in the room had been put out, so it was darker than before I

'_I… That's… What?_' As I tried to make sense of it, I failed to notice Luna, who had been standing in front of me even before I woke up.

"You alright Alpha?" She asked with concern.

"Yeah… Just a little… Shaken up." I said in between breaths.

"... What was that?" She asked with concern.

"It's… I don't know… Everything's just… Kind of a blur right now." I said looking back at the shield on my arm.

'We will talk again.' I heard. My head snapped back to look behind me, but all I saw was the wall. I looked down at my shield again, just trying to figure out what had happened.

"I just… Gotta get some sleep." I said.

"Was it that voice again?" She asked.

I nodded. "Yeah. I… Managed to hold a conversation with it face to face-kind of. It's a…" I paused trying to think of the right words.

"Don't worry about trying to explain." She said. "Just try and get some sleep."

I chuckled. "I don't think I'm getting sleep after that."

"Do you want me to sleep with you tonight? Not like that-just..." She asked, messing with her hands.

"Huh?" I asked. It wouldn't have been the first time. She had sneaked into my sleeping bag quite a few times, but this was the first time she was asking.

"When you were doing… _That, _you were mumbling and shaking. If you went to sleep, you might start doing it again. So…"

'_She's concerned. Can't blame her for it thought._'

"Um.. Yeah, thanks." I moved to the side of the bed and let Luna lay down next to me. She nestled into the crook of my shoulder and pulled my other arm over.

"Comfy?" I asked.

"Very. Try and fall asleep but… Tell me if something happens, alright?"

"I will. Don't worry."

* * *

We were woken up by the sound of knocking on our door. Luna was still groggy and was stubborn to let go as I stood up. I managed to break free and walked over to the door. When I opened it, Phobos was standing outside in his full armor with the rest of the party standing behind him.

"Hey, the rest of us all up ready to go. What's taking so… Long…?" He asked but noticed Luna still sleeping on the bed. "Uh…"

I waved it off. "No, it was something else. Head down and go ahead and get food everyone. We'll be down in a minute."

"Alright… Look, uh, you two don't have to try and hide it if th-"

"Phobos," I said somewhat embarrassed but mainly annoyed. "I'll tell what it was later, but it was not _that_."

"Alright, just be careful. Don't wanna be down a fighter for-" He didn't finish since I closed the door.

"What was that?" Luna asked groggily.

"Phobos and the rest of our party. We ended up oversleeping. I have to get some food and head down to the Elder and get that seed to him but once I'm back we'll head out."

I put on my armor plates and jacket. Luna had changed out her clothes while I was turned around, putting on her armor and jacket as well. We grabbed our packs and went down to get some food.

We came down to eat our food and I saw Hickwaal at one of the tables, half way through his meal. At the table were a few of the militia soldiers he had hired. Hickwaal noticed me as well and made a slight wave.

I waved back but sat down besides my party was at. I ate quickly and finished about the same time that Hickwaal did.

"Check your stuff and be ready to leave in an hour or two. We won't be going for a while but I'd prefer to be back on the road a-sap."

"Weren't you gonna explain you and Luna?" Deimos said. Luna looked confused for a second but went beat red.

'_God dammit Phobos._' I glared at him and smiled, satisfied with his work.

"Later. Right now I have to go sell that seed to village elder and Hickwaal."

"Well, good to see you didn't forget." Hickwaal said as he walked up to our table. Flanking him where four of the Militia soldiers he had hired.

"Hey Hickwaal. You ready to head?" I asked. Since he was here, I figured it was best to head over with him, as all parties would be accounted for, and I had no idea where the Elder was.

"Yes, I believe it is time we make our leave. Let us go." He said. We left the inn and headed for the Elders house. As Hickwaal knew where it was, I let him lead the way for us.

"Mind if I ask why you have four of my men constantly following you?" I asked with curiosity.

"Not at all. You seem to already know about my little 'bandit problem'. The reason I have these men with me is case they try something while I'm still in the city. The rest are currently safeguarding the goods I brought with me."

'_Reasonable. It would make sense if the bandits tried something in the city while he wasn't expecting. The guards would be difficult but if they were quiet…_' I nodded to Hickwaal. It was after some time passed that one of the soldiers decided to speak up.

"So you and the wolf girl general?" Asked the captain that was with us.

"Goddammit-how many people did Phobos tell in the _five minutes _that went by?" I asked annoyed.

"Well, he saw us with Hickwaal while we were eating and decided to pass the word on. Couple other guys were there to hear it." The captain said.

Some of the men piped up. "Congrats General. Not bad."

"Guess Demi-humans don't just like the Shield Hero."

"You grab her tail yet?"

"Why are you all like this?" I said tiredly. " Out of all the people in my party I expected to pull something like that, Phobos was the last person. But you know what, I'll give it to him. Not bad for his first. Not bad at all."

The soldiers just kept laughing.

'_Still gonna get back at him for it later._'

"I must say general," Hickwaal said through his own laughing. "I didn't think you would be this relaxed around your men."

"The Militia's a family, Hickwaal. Even if it's only been around a month, many of the soldiers have had more than a few things to bond over, be that waves trying to kill them or Jax being a hard ass. Besides, it's the same way I was trained in the Watchmen militia."

"Watchmen militia? I thought there was only The Militia."

"In this world yes. The only Militia under that name is stationed in Riyute. But where I come from there are hundreds, each one supported with thousands, if not tens of thousands, of men to bolster what's already the largest military in my world. And that's not to mention raw civilian population, given the mandatory military service requirements."

"Your world? Ah yes, I do suppose the Shield Hero is from another world. But I must ask, why does your country posses such a military?"

"Multiple reasons. Being one requires a little lesson in recent history, if you don't mind the one sided talk."

"Please go ahead. I am quite curious about your world."

I nodded. "My world is quite different from yours. We don't have magic, suffer from the waves, or even possess the same form of kingdoms prevalent in this world. For a long time, problems that plague this world use to be all but eradicated in mine. Poverty, famine, disease, ailment, physical and mental, and problems that your world hasn't encountered yet, my world has created a solution for. Wonders of science and engineering has allowed us to not only step on new worlds, but colonize them. From frozen tundras of Pluto to Molten seas of Mercury, no place in the solar system has been untouched by my people. For many, it was a golden age of prosperity any would consider a golden age for our kind."

"Was?" Hickwaal asked, raising an eyebrow."

I nodded. "At the height of my people, disaster struck. A cult calling themselves the Red Suns rose up against the rest of the world. They were fanatics. Their beliefs were nothing short of lunacy, a form of satanism and "new age thinking". They believed that, by sacrificing the greater majority of mankind, they bring about their transcendence into Godhood. And thus, war ensued. They had incorporated themselves into almost every aspect of our world, every nation, every military, even as higher ups in corporations. In one day, my world went from the longest period of world peace in history to the worst war in history."

"A horrible turn events it seems. I am sorry to hear such a tragedy befell your home." Hickwaal said. "I would assume the war played out in your favor?"

"At a cost. Fifty years of fighting across multiple worlds against some of the worst weapons my world had ever seen. Tools we had built for our well-being were turned into weapons of war. The worst was gene editing and nanite technology. Gene editing allowed the creation of giants. Barons, we called them. Raging berserkers that charged headlong into firing lines, ripping apart whatever soldier they could get their hands on. Nanites were, arguably worse. Imagine a fog that suddenly began to twist and move, turning anything that entered it into ash.

"We had our own weapons, though. Rigs and warships were the most effective. Metal giants that could grind the entire division to dust were our best offense, while our warships maintained space-based supremacy. Their effectiveness against ground armies became especially apparent once they were outfitted with bombardment weapons. I couldn't tell you how many continents on each world look more akin to crater fields than any true landscape."

"When was the conflict ended?"

"Thirty years ago. We won, but the other side still doesn't quite see it that way. I've had a few run ins with them myself."

"Yes... I can see why such a fighting force would be necessary." Hickwaal said. Looking around I could see we had made it to a large stone building. It didn't stand out from the other's, but the people moving in and out in uniform gave some indication to it being a government building.

We entered the building and I followed Hickwaal to where the Elder would be. The inside was primarily stone, with wood work covering the floors and coming up to the waist along the wall.

"I asked one of your men to come here and tell the Elder we would be coming in the morning, as well that we would have a solution to the worsening famine. He should already be expecting us." Hickwaal said.

"Good thinking Hickwaal." I said. "I probably should've guessed that he would be busy with the famine."

We walked up a flight of stairs towards the wall behind a desk. Walking up to a large wooden door on the second floor, Hickwaal knocked and we waited for an answer.

"Come in." We heard from inside. It was a gruff, older voice. We entered, and were greeted with a room similar to downstairs but with a red carpet and a wooden desk at the far side. Behind the desk was a window overlooking the town square. Sitting at the desk was an older man with short grey hair and a cloak blue robe.

"Ah, you must be Hickwaal and General Carter. Thank you for coming, my name is Elder Haromen." The Elder said.

"Yes sir. I hear you have a famine problem?" I said.

"Yes. You say you have a solution?"

"Yes sir." I said bringing out the bag of seeds and handing it to him. "These should work to quell the famine, though you'll need to know how to keep it from over-expanding."

"And what exactly are they?"

"Rapid-growing seeds. They should bear fruit quickly, and with little maintenance. Now you'll need to attend to it to make sure it doesn't get out of hand. Because of their rapid growth, they can expand past their boundaries easily."

"Yes, though I must say, I am rather skeptical."

"Understandably so. If you'd show me a farming plot of some kind, I can demonstrate the seed to you."

"Ah, yes. If you'd follow me." Haromen said.

* * *

"Do we have a deal?" I said to Hickwaal and the Elder. I had demonstrated the modified Bio-plant to them and they were surprised, to say the least. I planted multiple other seeds and let them grow, letting a hand full of the workers collect the fruit, with a portion as payment to them. They took the payment well, with food outweighing money in importance at the moment. By the end of the hour, I had multiple crates filled.

To Haromen and Hickwaal, I offered a reasonable yet generous trade. Hickwaal would pay a gold coin for each bag of seeds and three each crate of fruit I sold to him, along with the information he promised me. Given the town's current state, I sold the seeds to them for half price, but a portion of the profits from the fruit sold would go to the Militia. It wasn't a large portion, only six silvers for every gold, but it serve as a good constant source of money.

Haromen was quick to accept while Hickwaal nodded, albeit with a bit more consideration. We shook hands and closed the deal.

"Thank you, sir Hero." Haromen said. "Truly, this village owes you a great deal."

"Just doing my job." I said. "If you ever get bored of potato-tasting fruit, I should have some other crops whipped up at a later time. Feel free to buy those too."

We shared a laugh while I turned to Hickwaal. Haromen handed me a coin purse filled some twenty gold while I handed him a large bag full of eighty seeds I had been producing for the last hour. He left while the workers collected the bag and went to work planting other seeds in other plots, making sure to follow my instructions.

All together it was some thirty five gold coins I had collected.

"I must say, General, you do not disappoint. Now, what else did you have in mind to buy from me?"

"Well, I've already gotten the information I need from you." I said.

"Yes, though I must say Melromarc troop movements, border security, and anything on the three heroes is quite an odd selection."

"Trust me mate, if you knew what I did, it'd make perfect sense. But I'm also gonna need a crystal for a magic spinning wheel."

"Well, the crystal is easy." Hiackwaal said, bringing out a pocketbook. He flipped through it before pulling out what I assumed was the deed to a near-by mine. "Take this the location marked on the map with it. The workers should let you in without difficulty. Consider it an invitation... To a profitable future."

I took the deed and put it in my pocket. "Much appreciated-"

"Alpha!"

Looking over, I could see Luna running up to us.

"Luna? What happened?"

"It's Filo! It-She-did a- turned into…" Luna said trying to get her words together.

'_That's gonna get me some questions._'

"Oh sh-Uh, I'm sorry Hickwaal, but I'm gonna have to cut this short." I said shaking his hand. I turned around to Luna. "Let's go."

Luna nodded and left back for the stables. I turned to Hickwaal and continued negotiating, albeit a bit more rushed now.

* * *

"Gonna be honest… Probably should'a saw this coming…" I said, looking at Filo in her knew human form. I had already expected her to discover her human form, but I should've known it'd be at the most inconvenient time possible. Currently, she was sitting by the stable she slept in. She was next to Phobos wearing one of the small dresses we bought for her, having gone back to bed.

"So… What are we gonna do about this?" Deimos asked.

"Continue with the plan." I said. "We move up to mine with the crystal, grab some, jump back to Castle Town, and get Filo some clothes and armor. Nothing's happened that we hadn't anticipated… Except for the Bio-plant but that worked out fine."

"Well, who's to say that something doesn't happen when we're getting the crystal." Luna says with concern. "You thought we'd only have to grab the seed and go, but what instead happened is us almost losing three of our party members. Who's to say this won't go south either."

I held me chin thinking about what she said.

"True." I said. "I'd be lying if I said I haven't started calling my own information into question. But, there's two, technically three, things I've noticed. The first is that this line of occurrences still follows the general trend and events. That means that major occurrences should remain the same, unless we change something ourselves."

"And the second?" Phobos asked.

"The largest changes occur to the smallest events, and the smallest changes to the largest occurrences, with a few exceptions. Think about it. With the bio-plant, it was originally supposed to be an empty chest. What instead happened was exactly what Luna said. The duel, Motoyasu wasn't supposed to have a curse series, but in terms of outcome, it was relatively unchanged. I still lost. Hell, finding the first cache of the previous shield hero. What was literally just a piece of idle chatter, gave me the information I needed to end up in that cave, and start the most pivotal occurrences, giving us both the information we needed to start looking for the vaults and me the shield responsible for your three becoming demi-humans.

"Going off of that scale, the Crystal was somewhat of a mid-level occurrence. There's certainly an opportunity for something to happen, but the outcome should remain largely unchanged. Now, make no mistake, it's not full-proof, considering that, by the same scale, a trip to the store for supplies could turn into like a, I don't know fruit crusade or something that just makes no sense."

"We should start heading." Luna said. "We still need to get that crystal, and you still have some explaining to do."

"Right." I said, scratching the back of my head. A thought crossed my mind.

'_I never told Raphtalia about her village did I… Guess I'll do that too._'

"Well, y'all head out and mount up. I just gotta… Handle this…" I said motioning to Filo. The others nodded and left, with the exception of Phobos. I crouched down by Filo. "Hey Filo. Time to wake up."

I nudged her and she began to wake up. She yawned and stretched her arms before looking up at me.

"Hm…? Master!" She said jumping up at me and hugging my neck. "Where have been?"

"Sorry Filo. Had to handle some boring business stuff" I said. "But we gotta start going. We have a lot of head ground to move and not a lot of time to do it."

Filo let go. "Alrighty! Can we get some food on the way?"

"Well, we're gonna have to so… Yes."

"Yay!" Filo shouted. She started running out of the stables and jumped into the air.

"No-wait-not-in-your-!" To late. Filo transformed into her Filolial form mid hop, tearing the small dress she was wearing to shreds. "Dress…"

She kept walking out, completely unfazed by the strips of cloth covering her feathers. "

'_God-You know what? I'll just make them from now on._' I thought to myself. I looked at Phobos with a tired expression that he returned in kind as we both realized what we had signed up for.


	14. Honorary Guest

**Chapter 14, Honorary Guest**

"You ever just-"

"Deimos." Luna said.

"Yes?"

"If you say one more thing, I'm strapping your mouth closed until we get to the border."

We had been traveling for the past couple of weeks to reach the border, jumping back and forth between the towns as we went. We grabbed ourselves the crystal and gave it to the local witch in Castle Town. During our travels, we had been buying and selling different items we came across. We had already helped the grandma who was sick, which would prove helpful during the wave and later after.

While we were in Riyute, I had designed and built Filo's an armor set, keeping practicality in mind. Instead of the white dress she had before, it was black with a metal dress over black pants. Small steel armor plates covered most of her torso and arms. She still didn't wear any shoes though. The Plates weren't as much for protection as they were to act as platforms for enchantments. Multiple light enchantments had been added to each part, increasing stamina, defense, and attack power.

On their own, it wasn't much, but strung together, they were pretty powerful. It served as good practice for when I would enchant our other armors. In her Filolial form, the plates formed a chest piece over her front but not much else.

I hadn't bothered with getting the slave crest. I knew about the increase to experience gain but it didn't sit well with me.

For the past hour or so, Deimos had been asking random questions and stating random facts in an attempt to make the run interesting. They were funny at first but after an hour, they became more annoying than anything. Still, it provided a good relief for what was to happen.

'_How did he even learn half that stuff he said?_'

"Hey Master, what's sword guy like?" Filo asked, running in the center behind me in her Filolial form.

"He's quiet and reserved, and usually overly skeptical about what he doesn't know."

"Come to think of it, what we gonna do with that energy-shield-projector-thingy?" Luna asked. "It's kind of a waste just sitting in Erhard's shop."

"Eventually I'm gonna stick it in an armor set, but we'll need to find something to power it and an armor set bulky enough to hold it."

"Has your 'friend' given you anymore information?" Luna asked. As we traveled back and forth, I had managed to talk more with what was technically my shield, and even learned his name. It was the same as the Shield I had unlocked the of the duel. 'A serpent beast, stretching the oceans length from tip to tip. None have seen it, yet all know its name.' Fitting for his own size and shape.

While Deimos and Phobos seemed fine, though a bit shaken, Luna and Raphtalia expressed the most concern. Raphtalia as she didn't have the same pack trust as the wolves, and Luna for my own safety.

The question did get me thinking about some of our talks.

"Other than cryptic information, Leviathan hasn't told me much. But I was able to confirm he is related to the warp, and that the heroes only grow above the max amount of strength by tapping into greater amounts of their 'weapons' power. Everything else, however, is just speculation."

As we came over a hill, the wall came into view. I told everyone to move into the woods so the look outs didn't see us. Once we were in a good spot, I turned to my party. I had a plan to get past the wall without alerting the soldiers, and by extension, the King, but it would require a great deal of theatrics. Specifically special effects.

"Everyone remember what they're doing?" I asked. I received multiple nods and affirmatives from the party. "Good."

I summoned my Bio-Plant Shield and created multiple seeds I had designed on the way up. Each was designed for a specific aspect of the plan I had.

I smiled at the prospects of my idea coming together.

* * *

"Everything ready?" I asked. The party members present all nodded and I uploaded a code to the plants I had on my shield.

For the past few hours, we had been planting seeds discreetly throughout the forest and linking them together. We planned to move at dark and, unfortunately, it had not reached that point yet.

The distraction was comprised of three plants, 'B-Shifters,' 'B-Risers,' 'B-Glowers,' and 'B-Sounders.' Not the most impressive names, but they served their purpose. The B stands for border, as the plants would specially designed for plan of crossing the border.

Shifters were simple plants. Green stalks that anchored themselves to the ground and strap to standing trees. The larger version could snap said trees. Risers with flowers with long stems reaching almost a hundred fit in the air with a lot of leaves. These plants were all grouped together in a circle to appear as a solid object in the dark. Glowers and Sounders were simplest in aspect, but most complex in design. Plants with lungs and red bio-luminescence, as it turns out, are both far more difficult to create than one would think.

To get past the wall, I took the Burrow Flower and created a modified subspecies named Tunnel Seeds. Instead of glowing flowers, it would create a tunnel in the dirt. I had planted a Spitter with the Tunnel Seeds, and fired them a distance from the main road.

Each plant came with a self-destruct feature. Once I send the signal, the risers would lower themselves slowly, before everything on the circuit would disintegrate itself..

'_Those soldiers are gonna be so confused when this is all over._' I thought with a chuckle.

"Finished on our end. You sure this'll work?" Deimos asked, walking up to me with Raphtalia behind him.

"Positive. How's the food looking?" I asked. Since we would be moving late in the night and couldn't start a fire then, it would be some time until our next chance to eat something. We decided to make a little something now to replenish our strength before B-lining it to the nearest town in Siltvelt.

"Almost done. Checked with Luna and Phobos on our way over here. Not gonna lie, those fruits taste like crap on their own but those two can make them taste pretty good."

"Not a fan of Potatoes Deimos?" I jokingly asked while setting down the last vine. "Let's gather up everyone and eat. After that, we'll climb up into the trees and wait there until nightfall."

* * *

We were stationed throughout the forest as close to the wall as possible. It was dark, with the top of the wall lit by torches.

I looked over a Deimos who was in a tree just within my sight. Luna was to my left equally as far, while Raphtalia and Phobos were completely out of sight to me. The reason we were so far from each other was because we planned to move across the field in pieces so. This way, if we were spotted, the rest of the party would remain hidden or be difficult to find.

I nodded to Deimos and he nodded back before turning around and nodding to what I assumed was Raphtalia. I looked the other way and nodded to Luna, who returned the gesture.

'_And so it begins._' I thought. I grabbed one of the seemingly random vines that had been draped over branch I was on and ripped it. A shiver went down the vine and traveled away from me to the setup we built.

When the signal reached, many of the trees began to move aside as if something massive was moving through them. This earned the guards attention, as many all of them focused on where the 'monster' was heading.

With the soldiers distracted, Raphtalia ran across the opening and to the wall carrying Filo on her back. While Raph could turn invisible, she couldn't turn Filo invisible, and none of us quite trusted her to not turn into a filolial while running. They both wore a black cloak to better hide themselves in the dark. Raph wasted no time jumping down into the hole.

'_That's two._'

Grabbing the second vine, I ripped it and waited. When the signal reached, the sound of trees breaking could be heard, the direction changing to face the wall. Many of the torches on the wall began moving on the opposite side of the gate in an attempt to better see what was happening.

It was Phobos and Deimos' turn to run. With their slower speed and larger profile, they would need a larger distraction to stay hidden. The breaking tree's would provide that. With the idea of an increasing threat, the soldiers would be far more worried about the noises and more distracted from the two wolves.

Once they made it to the other side, Deimos hopped into the hole first, followed by Phobos. Raph and Filo could both slide through together easily, but Deimos and Phobos would only get stuck if they tried to.

'_That's four. Time for the main attraction._' I thought, snapping the third vine. Slowly, the Risers began to lift themselves, appearing as though it were a giant worm creature, the glowers imitating six giant eyes. With the light of the moon behind it, the front was pitch black, hiding it's features. Behind it however, one could clearly see interconnected vines and trunks. Much of the stem remained on the ground as it was unable to support the additional weight, a slight miscalculation on my part, but it worked out better.

With its hunched over appearance of a giant snake, I could only assume how terrified the soldiers were. The terror could only increase as the Sounders rang out, giving the voice of a sinister humming for the creation. It wasn't a full roar, as that would give the impression the beast was attacking, and all I needed it to do was make itself known and go away.

Luna, seeing the rising creature, ran out from the trees and crossed the opening. As fast as Raphtalia, she ducked into the hole to moment she made it.

'_And that's five. Time for the finale._' I thought, ripping the last vine. I hopped down and began running across the opening as well. Glancing over I could see the creation turn around and duck back down into the forest, the Shifters doing their job to impersonate trees first breaking as the plants laid down.

I slid into the whole and walked through the tunnel. It was supported with the vines along the wall and was rather narrow. I ran through the tunnel and came to the other side.

"Need some help." Phobos whispered as he peered down the whole and held his hand out.

"You know, that doesn't sound too bad." I said reaching up and taking his hand. He pulled me out and we bolted off into the tree line with the rest of the group. Sparing a glance behind me, I smiled, thinking about what we just pulled off.

We were now in Siltvelt.

* * *

We had been running ever since we got past the wall. Once we were far enough, the wolves and Filo transformed and we kept running. It wasn't until what I guessed was three in the morning that we finally began to slow down and walk the remaining distance to a border town we had found on the map.

"I'm not gonna say it was a bit excessive. But was a fifty-foot plant with red eyes and growl really necessary?" Luna asked between breaths.

"Say what you will, but that was still, by far, the most smooth plan I ever had." I said in wonder.

"Right, cause all your other ones go horribly." Luna said.

"That was time!"

Luna looked back at me with a crooked eyebrow.

"Okay, two times."

"Mhm." Deimos hummed behind me. He, Raph, and Phobos were looking at me with the same crooked eyebrow as Luna.

"Three times-shut up, it worked out." I retorted. "Besides, it got us what we need, didn't it? And now the soldiers will definitely never know what happened because they'll be too busy trying to figure out what they saw happened last night."

"A fifty foot snake… That was supposed to be a hundred…"

"My point still stands-"

"Look over there!" Filo said.

Over the horizon, I could see the start of the border town. The buildings weren't all too impressive, being mostly wooden similar to Riyute, unlike the previous towns we traveled through with their stone and glass buildings. After being around humans for so long, it was strange to see a town full of demi-humans. Not unpleasant, just different.

"Well, let's hurry up and find a place to crash for the night." I said. We picked up the pace to the town.

As we entered, we received multiple strange looks. Most of them were directed at me. My shield, Leviathan, was on my hip so nobody would immediately guess I was the Shield Hero. Still, the looks persisted. Maybe it was I was obviously human to them?

'_Still feels strange knowing that the thing on my arm is both sentient and could kill me if it wanted to._'

As we walked through, an older, rounder man approached us. He wore a blue robe and had a wooden cane in his left hand. He had grey hair and a pair of old lion ears on his hair.

"Excuse me, might I ask what you're doing here?" He asked.

"Passing through." I responded. "We're on our way to the Dragons hourglass within this country. Might I ask you name sir?"

The man stroked his beard in thought. "My name is Elric. I am the village elder here. What might your name be?"

"John Carter, sir." I said. I heard multiple people gasp at the name. Many of them began to talk amongst themselves, saying I was the shield hero.

'_Should've seen that one coming._'

"The shield hero? Is it truly you?" Elric asked in disbelief. I couldn't blame him. No doubt, they knew about what was happening in Melromarc, and were forced to fight off the waves without the help of a Hero. And with the demi-humans countries worshiping the shield hero, a stark contrast to Melromarc, they must see me as a savior.

I put the shield on my arm and showed it to Elder. "Yours truly." I said.

Cheers erupted around us. The townspeople were ecstatic. Raphtalia and I dismounted and the wolves and Filo transformed. People swarmed around us to greet us.

It was more than a little overwhelming.

Despite being swarmed, I still stood at least a head taller than the people around me, which didn't help with the saviour appearance. Looking at my party, Phobos stood out even more than I did. Deimos, though not as much, was still rather easy to spot. The rest of my party were completely submerged. I moved through the crowds and managed to get find Luna while Deimos found Raph and Phobos found Filo.

"Please everyone. Show some respect to the Hero of the Shield." Said Elric. The crowd moved apart as he walked through. My party had regrouped to face him. "Please, come. We hope you will stay for a while."

"As generous as your offer is, we'll need to leave early tomorrow. There's a lot we need to do, and it's vital we complete them before the next wave. Though, now that I think about it, we are doing pretty good for time." I thought out loud.

'_If we keep up with this pace, we might actually have some time left hang around Riyute and train up some more Militia troops._'

"Please, I insist. At least allow us to make your night here pleasant."

"Well, we could use some rest. I think we'll take you up on that offer."

"Thank you, shield hero. Please, let me show you an inn you can stay at."

We followed Elric to an inn. It appeared to be one of the nicer buildings in the town. We entered the inn and sat down at one of the tables, glad it doubled as a food joint. Luna and Phobos sat with me and one side while Raph, Deimos, and Filo sat on the other. Almost immediately, the table was covered in great amounts of food.

'_Is this how the other heroes were treated in the palace? No wonder they all became spoiled._'

I let out a nervous laugh, not quite sure what to do with the pampering.

"Is something wrong Shield Hero?" Asked one of the waitresses as she placed down the food. She was a fox demi human from what I could tell, and wore a simple shirt and pants, not to different from the service in Riyute. The clothes seemed a bit small, but with this town on the outskirts, new clothes probably weren't in high supply.

"Not at all. Just not used to all the pampering."

"Really-oh right. Melromarc hates the Shield Hero." She said tucking in her head. "Sorry."

I waved it off as she walked over to me. "You're fine. Besides, the Queen will be one of my benefactors so once she returns, things will get cleared up pretty quickly."

"That's good to hear. Well, if you are going to spend the night here," She said leaning close to my face grinning. I leaned back, surprised by the sudden closeness. "I'd be more than happy to spend it with you."

I became a sputtering mess. Malty, I was prepared to deal with her flirting. This, I was not. I wouldn't lie, she was quite attractive, and the hazel hair and blue eyes wasn't helping with the sputtering.

I was going to say something but before I could Luna scooted across the bench onto my chest, effectively shoving the girl away. Luna didn't look back, still facing the table. She had a mix of annoyance and embarrassment on her face.

'_Thank God for that._' I thought. I laughed nervously, hoping to play this off.

At least I was going to before Deimos opened his mouth.

"If you're hoping to sleep with him, Luna beat you to it a while ago." He said. Luna and I went wide eyed as our heads shot towards him. Phobos almost choked on his food from laughing while Raphtalia covered her mouth in surprise. Filo just stared in confusion.

"Deimos!" We yelled. His only response was an evil laugh.

"Well, I shouldn't be surprised. You two do seem rather close." The Fox said with a grin, noting Luna was still pressed against my torso.

"No mam-that's not-my partner is-we're not-" I sputtered out while Luna stared daggers at Deimos. By this point, everyone in the pub was laughing.

"Wait a second-what about you and Raph!?" I said loud enough for people in the joint to hear, but not enough to come off as complete yelling. "I'm almost certain she was running her fingers through your hair when you were passed out in that dungeon!"

I put my elbow on the table and leaned forward with my hand on my chin, smiling. Luna mimicked my appearance, adding her own piece. "And with how many times you two just disappear into the blue, I have to wonder what is happening." It was our turn to smile as Raphtalia went red but Deimos tried waving it off.

"What me and Raph do is not important, the subject is you too right now." He said.

"So you admit it you are doing something." Luna said.

"Pray tell dear friend, just what might that be?" I added.

"Everything you have and then some-" He said grinning. Before I could say anything, Raphtalia jumped in her seat and pushed Deimos' head down into his plate.

"I-I-Ignore him, he doesn't know what he's talking about." She said through nervous laughter. Deimos tried pushing up on the table but Raphtalia had him pinned.

If people weren't laughing before, they certainly were now.

* * *

I sat down on a bed in my sleep wear. I stared at the wall for a second before I started laughing again, the sight of an annoyed Deimos with food on his face still fresh on my mind.

"Are you still laughing at dinner?" Luna said, walking into the room in her sleep wear.

"How could I not? That was hilarious." I said.

"It was funny yeah, but it was still kinda weird. I'll take first watch." Luna said as she sat down on the second bed. I raised an eyebrow.

"Luna, this is an inn. We don't need to take watch." I said somewhat confused.

"I don't trust that fox." She said simply.

I laughed a bit, seeing what she was worried about. "Luna she's not gonna try something in the night."

She kept staring at the door, not convinced. I sighed and walked up to her, putting my hand on her shoulder.

"It's fine, really. And even if she did, I wouldn't take her up on it. So go to bed." I said with some light humor. She looked down, somewhat embarrassed to my confusion. I started walking back over to my bed.

'_Man, it feels like every time something happens, she gets super protective._'

"Hey, John." She said. It wasn't common she used my actual name.

"Yeah?" I asked turning around. She mumbled something but I couldn't quite hear it. "What was that?"

I took a step forward but she jumped up, wrapping her arms around my neck.

"Luna-!" I started but was cut off by her squashing her lips on mine. I tried pushing her away but she wouldn't budge. Giving in, I let my hands come up to her hips and wrap around her back. We remained like this for almost a minute until she pulled away, smiling sultry.

"You have no idea how long I've been waiting to do that." She said. I couldn't think of a response. "Ever since you fought Motoyasu and blacked out, it felt like I was going to lose you, and I realized something. What we do, what we're fighting, there's no guarantee that any of us will make it through all of this. And when you got stuck in the caverns, I thought I'd lost you again."

She leaned back in. "I don't want to regret something I never did." She whispered to me.

"I promised didn't I? I said I'd never let anything happen to any of you." I said, letting her pull back again, but this time with a saddened expression. I could understand where she was coming from and I would be lying to say I didn't find some enjoyment in the last minute. But here? Now?

"But what about you?" She asked. "You promised nothing would happen to us. You never promised something wouldn't happen to you."

"... You've been thinking about that for a long time, haven't you?" I asked.

She huffed. "Longer than you know. But I didn't have to think too long about what I want. Do you know what that is?"

"... No."

Her smile returned as she pushed me back. I fell back onto the bed and Luna on top of me, still holding onto my neck. "You."

She brought her lips down on mine again, but not as rough as before. I gave in and returned the kiss. We pulled away, Luna smiling.

"But you won't let me go to far." She said sliding into the crook of my arm, keeping her head nuzzled up to mine.

"So how about we just get used to this from now on." She said. She let out a breath she had been holding, no doubt happy with her work, while I laid there, processing a very simple yet complex thought.

'_What the hell just happened?_'

* * *

'_That was… I don't even know._' I thought to myself. I hadn't gotten much, if any, sleep last night with Luna staying wrapped around my neck. The thoughts going through my head didn't help either. She kept her word and hadn't made any moves past keeping herself wrapped around my neck, thankfully, but that guarantee she wouldn't try something later.

I looked out of the window and saw that it was morning. I tried getting up but Luna wouldn't budge.

"Don't move. Still tired." She grumbled.

"We have to get up Luna." I said, still groggy.

"You're tired too. I know you wanna sleep."

"I do. But we have to move." I said trying to get once more. She was a bit more cooperative this time and didn't try to keep me laying down. She stared at the wall before going wide eyed and beat red. She pulled up her legs and buried her face in her knees.

I raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

"I actually did that last night, didn't I?" She asked. I couldn't help but laugh. In only one night, she had gone from bold to absolutely bashful. "Don't laugh at me."

"All that last night and this is you the next morning? How can I not?" I said. I stood up and began putting on my armor plates. "Come one. We really do need to get ready."

She unrolled herself and started putting on her own armor. I finished tightening the leather straps on my armor with Luna finishing a little after me. We left our room and went down to the restaurant in the inn. Already sitting around was Filo and Phobos, but Deimos and Raph weren't present. During our time, Phobos had become more of a father like character with Filo, making sure she didn't run off or do something reckless. He had already ordered some food for us from what I could see.

"Where's Raph and Deimos?" Luna asked.

"No idea." Phobos said. "Saw them head up late last night, probably still asleep would be my guess."

"Probably." I said. "Let 'em rest. We'll have breakfast now and just make them eat theirs on the way."

"I would've been fine eating on the way." Luna mumbled.

"But I wasn't, and you wouldn't have stayed in bed if I had left without you." I said offhandedly as I started eating.

"Shut up." She said, eating her own food as well.

"You have the course we need to get to the capital?" Phobos asked.

"Yep. It's about a weeks worth of travel, so we'll need to move quick to get the class up before Ren makes it to the dragon, but we should get there in time."

We continued eating until Deimos and Raphtalia came down. Raphtalia seemed well rested but Deimos looked incredibly tired.

"What happened to him?" I asked Raphtalia.

"Didn't handle the late night so well apparently." She said, grabbing some food of her own food.

"Huh… Well, eat fast, we got a lot of ground to cover."

Deimos raised his head, confused, before remembering something. "Oh yeah, that's what we're here for." He said.

I face palmed. '_God dammit Deimos._'

* * *

"Are you certain you can't stay any longer?" Elric said.

"Sorry Elric. Wish we could stay longer, but we can't afford to spend anymore time here. Y'all were great for lodging us here." I said.

"Well, know you are always welcome here should you need. We do hope you will stay in Siltvelt."

I felt a tinge of guilt. "Unfortunately, I'm not quite finished in Melromarc. Make no mistake, I will be defending Siltvelt from the next wave, but there is much in Melromarc I still need to fix before I can consider coming back here."

The towns people looked down in disappointment.

"But Sir Hero, you can't be serious." Elric said. "The people of Melromarc hate the shield. They've disgraced your name and cast you aside as a criminal! What could possibly be there that would want you to return?"

"Believe me, I'm well aware of the country's view of me. But in the time after the next wave, the fate of the Heroes, and by extension, this world, will be determined." I said. The news shocked everyone, even my own party. "If the Heroes can come to work together and learn from each other, than I have no doubt this world will survive, albeit a bit banged up."

"And if they can't?"

I hesitated. "Than Fitoria will not hesitate to kill us so new Heroes may be summoned."


	15. The Royal Meeting

**Chapter 15, The Royal Meeting**

"Huh…" I said, looking up at the capital of Siltvelt. It was a rather quick journey from the border town who's name I forgot to ask, something I'm not very proud of. The city itself was a massive tiered city, dwarfing Castle Town in wonder. The first tier was ground level, but the second was built onto a massive, white stone platform. A third tier came after with the fourth and final tier rising high above the city, almost the same height as all the other tiers combined. Around it was a large, white stone wall to defend the city.

It was an impressive feat of construction, even by my world's standards. And we had space elevators built.

'_Granted they're all on worlds with almost a fraction of Earth's gravity but they'd otherwise be impossible to build with our current materials so I guess that evens it out._'

I wasn't the only one in awe of the city.

"It's massive!" Said Deimos. "How'd they even build this!?"

"Heavy steel bracing and stone filling at the base with lighter materials like aluminum towards the top probably." I said, thinking out loud.

"How are you not more in awe at this!?"

"Oh I'm impressed, it's just… After watching the equivalent of a fleet of flying fortresses perform a vertical take-off into the exosphere, anything not flying kinda loses the awe factor."

'_I miss Fleet Day. There always had the best parades… Wait a second-_'

"Ah, Dammit!"

"What is it?" Luna asked.

"At this year's Fleet Day they were gonna unveil a new battlecruiser class vessel called the Valkyrie Black! The event was gonna be massive since they were even bringing some of the warships from the Martian fleets." I groaned.

Luna just looked back at me about to say something but decided not to. The party, to their credit, had been less than surprised to hear about me and Luna. Deimos, to our dismay, had more than a few more jokes to say. About halfway through, we had already gotten used to the teasing.

'_Strange, considering he and Raphtalia are a thing. He is still pretty immature, but he does come through when it matters… Now I gotta get back at him and Phobos… Meh, I'll give him to Raphtalia._'

"You know you're gonna end up explaining that one right?" Phobos asked.

"Yeah but I'm still a total nerd for that stuff so I could honestly drone on about it for hours. Lord knows I already have for other stuff. Oh, before I forget," I brought everyone's attention to me. "Let's try and keep the Shield Hero thing on the down-low. If the town we came to basically threw a celebration, there's no telling what'll happen here."

"I like that idea. I don't want to be swarmed by people again." Filo said.

"And on a real note, think what would happen if people found out you and Luna were mates." Phobos said. "People don't like the Shield Hero in Melromarc, but Siltvelt worships you, literally. The noble and royal families would most likely be displeased."

"That's… Actually a fair point." I said. "It'll come out at some point, no question, but hopefully by that point, I'll have something worked out. Granted, the odds they actually try something is slim, but you never know."

Luna grumbled something but I couldn't quite catch it.

"Relax," I said. "I'm not gonna leave you just cause some nobles daughter tried getting funky with me, you know that."

"Still annoying." She grumbled. That was something I couldn't blame her for.

"But we are gonna tell the rulers right? Who you are that is." Raphtalia asked.

"Yep. It wouldn't make much sense to go in, not say who I was, and just hope they let us use their hourglass. Maybe flash it to some guards too to make getting their easier."

"Are you sure that'd work?" Asked Luna looking back at me.

"My dear Luna, are you doubting the power of flashing something fancy to some guards?"

"We'll see when we get there." She said looking back at the road.

"Where is their hourglass anyway?" Deimos asked.

"Probably at the top of the city," Phobos said. "It's the only place that really makes sense with this layout. Either that or a chamber built into the main tower of the city."

'_I really have rubbed off on them haven't I._'

As we grew closer to the town, more and more people began to appear. At first, it was only farmers and lumberjacks, but quickly, caravans began to appear as well, loaded with valuable trade-goods. It wasn't until we made it to the gate of the wall surrounding the city that we spotted the first city guards.

Their armor wasn't much better than that of Melromarc soldiers, though certainly more covering. It was a heavy coat with armor plates covering their torso, arms, and legs. Wrapped around their necks were green cloth with black trim. They were armed with a large metal shield and spear. The soldiers were bear, fox, wolf, and cat-like demi-humans.

'_It almost looks exactly like the new militia armor… Strange._'

"Hold." Said a soldier at the gate. We stopped. "What's your business here?"

"Howdy sir," I started. "We're coming to use the Dragons Hourglass here to class-up."

"Adventurers. Do you have the approval to use the hour-glass?"

"Not yet."

"Then I'd say don't bother. If you don't have approval from any of the royal families now, it'll take some time for you to get it."

"Trust me, pal, I have it on good authority that won't be a problem." I said flashing my shield under my cloak. He looked ready to yell but I brought my finger up my lips telling him to hush. "We're on a schedule and I don't think crowds are very conducive to keeping it."

"O-of course." He stuttered. "Allow me to put together an escort for you sir. The Dragons Hourglass is only readily accessible to guards and people noticed by one of the royal families."

I looked at Luna and smirked my mask. She huffed and looked through the gate into the city. The buildings looked to be primarily built from grey stone and glass, a slight but still appeasing contrast with the marble white walls. The streets were bustling with activity, be it civilians, merchants, or adventurers.

'_Wasn't there supposed to be a massive flight of stairs leading to the top? Meh, it's probably fine._'

As we looked into the city, the guards came around and motioned for us to follow them. We walked through the gates and into the city. As we walked through, I looked at some of the shops and saw a variety of steel based items. Passing a large, open smithing shop, I saw something quite familiar.

'_Huh, it almost looks like that Bessemer Cauldron I designed… Wait-God-damn-second that is the Bessemer Cauldron I designed!_'

"Hey, hold up!" I called to the guards. I dismounted from Luna and walked over to the through the shop over to the cauldron.

"Uh Sir…!" One of the guards said. I ignored both him and the stairs from some of the blacksmith in the shop.

"Can I help you?" Asked one of the smiths, a large lion demi-human.

"Yes actually." I said looking over the gear work between the cauldron and its legs. It was a series of compound gears operated by a large hand crank. One full rotation on the crank would only move the cauldron five degrees, which, though slow, allowed workers to move the massive drum with only a few hands instead of a full set of machinery.

'_Definitely my design._' I thought. "Where'd you come across this piece of equipment?"

"This?" He asked referring to the cauldron. "One of the royal's messengers came by with the design and made a deal with us for it. Said the thing was a 'revolutionary piece of technology.' Can't say he was lying. After we got into a rhythm, this thing has been cranking out steel non-stop. Why do you ask?"

"Because this is my design." I said taking out a notebook I had stored in my back pocket and flipping to the original scribblings and calculations. Looking between the gears and my notebook, I confirmed that they were my design.

"Uh, you… Um…" He started. I waved him off.

"Don't worry." I stopped him. "I'm just curious. I didn't clear those designs to be sold so I'm just trying to figure out how it got here. Wait, then that means-those are Pattern-3 armors!"

"Uh… Mister…?" The Lion man asked confused. "Are you alright?"

"Completely." I said, but I don't think he was convinced. "Just realizing some things."

"Well… Uh, if you're ever looking for some new gear, feel free to go through the shop." He said jokingly.

"Hehe, yeah, sorry about that. John Carter." I said holding my hand out.

"Leo Castings." He said shaking my hand.

"Sir!" Said one of the guards running up to us. He seemed to be the youngest of the bunch, almost like a demi-human version of Ake. "Please, do come along. The royals really will want to meet you soon."

"Royals? What are you, some big shot?" he asked.

"Well, depending on whether or not they do what I ask them to not do, you'll probably find out pretty quickly. Hopefully I'll be seeing you around Leo." I said following the guard.

"Hopefully you'll be buying next time. See you around sir."

I walked back up to the escort and mounted Luna. I nodded to the guards and we started walking again. I waited a bit before asking them a question.

"If you don't mind me asking, who designed ya'lls armor?"

"Don't know Sir He- sir." Said one of the older guards. He was a Bear demi-human from what I could see and a large one at that. "One of the noble families who supply us our equipment said that it was 'designed by one of the greatest minds of this world.' Went on a tirade about it but didn't give away much more than that."

'_One of the greatest minds of this world? I mean… Taking into account the tech-difference between my world and this alone it's possible but still feels like they were overselling it._'

"And your take of it?" I asked.

"I don't know about the 'greatest mind of this world' but whoever did certainly knew what they were doing. Doesn't even get that hot in this thing."

"Well, good to hear your satisfied with it." As we walked through the city, I could see more and more of the architecture. Though it was primarily grey stone, there were multiple buildings that matched the white walls and base. These buildings appeared fortified and with a small concentration of guards, most likely as government or guard buildings.

'_Still looks nice though._' I thought. We came to the base of the second tier and began walking up a large flight of stairs. Next to it was a series of pulleys, wooden platforms, and weights connected by heavy ropes.

"What's that?" Asked Luna.

"Cargo elevator probably." I said. "If everything was moved by stairs than nothing would get anywhere fast. That takes the force off of most of the manpower and moves it onto more mechanical power."

"How do you know what those are?" Asked one of the guards, surprised that someone who had just entered the city instantly knew what the piece of equipment was.

"A lot of reasons. The main one being that I've worked on tech far more advanced than this."

The guards looked amongst each other, curious as to the extent of my experience but not so much so to break from escorting.

The second tier was far more urban than the first. While the lower tier had been more industrial with blacksmiths and various industrial buildings, it was the second tier that possessed more of the commercial buildings. Various shops, restaurants, and inns made up much of the second tier with larger, enclosed warehouses storing the more industrial aspects of the second tier.

Defensive structures were in more prevalence as well. While the first tier was primarily guard houses and barracks, this one included large anti-air towers. Though not armed with gun-emplacements, the ballista and mages were no doubt a powerful bunch. Taller buildings such as apartment structures and some noble houses could be seen as well.

The third tier was even more impressive. The third tier was by far the most impressive. Large mansions of powerful noble families dotted the sides, along with more advanced structures such as scholarly buildings and research centers.

All that remained now was the royal palace at the top of the city.

The very top of the city.

Twice as high as everything else.

'_I really hope they have another cargo elevator we can take._'

* * *

'_That… wasn't to bad actually._' I thought. Luckily, the city did have a cargo elevator that we hitched a ride on. The ride wasn't smooth as at many points the platform didn't grind across the stone walls or jump when it was stuck at moments. Multiple people in my party jumped at these, not knowing if the platform was gonna fall or not. The soldiers set to monitor the different areas all wore the same armor as the ones at the front, making me wonder just how long Siltvelt had those designs.

The speed of the lift was not impressive either and took some time to reach the top. But the wait was well worth it.

The top of the city was a sight to behold in itself. Surrounding the main palace was a vast array of gardens, vineyards, and studios. The palace stood up on a smaller ring on its own at the very peak with a flight of stairs leading to the entrance.

At this height, I could see just over the mountain tops and into the greenery between them. The tops of the mountains were whited in snow. The setting sun behind them accented the rocky outcroppings under the red, orange, and yellow skies.

I let out a whistle as walked towards the stone railing. "You don't see this everyday." I muttered.

"Aren't you gonna say you've seen more impressive?" Luna joked walking up to me in her human form.

"Ha-ha, real funny. I'll admit, when it comes to feats of construction, it's hard to find something in this world that tops what I've seen. But when it comes to this?" I said gesturing to the view before us. "I can only think of one."

I put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to my side, my shield resting on my hip. She laughed.

"Flattering are we?" She said.

"The opportunity presented itself. I'd say it worked rather well."

"Alright, wrap it." Phobos said. "We got something here to do."

He turned around and started walking back to the guards. Luna and I looked at each other and shrugged. I took my arm off her shoulder and we walked back up with the guards who escorted us up a final flight of stairs to the palace.

Much of the castle kept a white stone appearance as well, but it was floored and trimmed with darker, gray stonework. Clear glass allowed from some degree of viewing into the palace.

There was still one thing gnawing at me though.

'_It's so… empty._' Despite the large area and faculties, there was nearly nobody around. '_Isn't Siltvelt suppose to be run by noble families? Even if it were just the most influential families represented here, this place should be far more populated._'

"Soldier." I said, bringing one of the guards to attention. "Where is everyone? The castle can't be this empty."

"Waiting for you sir." A guard answer. "One of us ran ahead to alert the heads of the noble families to your arrival. They're probably gathered in the council room."

"Sounds about right." I thought out loud as we entered the castle. The inside was quite different than the outside of the castle. The inside of the castle matched the outside, with marble floors and stone walls. Lining the walls were large blue drapes hanging from the ceiling.

We walked up to a large set of stairs to a massive set of wooden double doors. Stationed on either side of the doors were six massive guards, each wearing armor that was similar to mine but modified with thicker plates on the shoulders and chest. Their weapons were far more grand with steel rods and adamantium tips making the spears they wield. I couldn't quite tell but they appeared to be white-tiger demi-humans.

I leaned over and asked "Who are they?" to one of our escorts.

"Royal guard. They're tasked with protecting the castle and the elders who reside here."

"What business do you have here?" One of them asked.

"We were tasked with escorting the Shield Hero to the palace."

"The Shield Hero? He is with you?" One of them asked with surprise.

The escort nodded and gestured to me. I walked forward and held out my shield for them to see. I decided to speak.

"We hoped to link up with the hourglass in Siltvelt, and make arrangements with the rulers here."

"Of course. Please, the ruling families have been expecting you." He said. My party and I walked forward to the set of doors as the royal guards opened them, but they stopped.

"I'm sorry, but your party will have to remain here for now."

"What? Why?" Luna asked.

"The council will only see the Shield Hero for now. Not his party."

"Relax Luna." I said. "I'll in and out quick."

"You better." She grumbled.

The council chamber was shaped like a large ring, with a drop in the middle. The ring was divided into four main pieces with the front row shared between for the four major parties.

Sitting in the front were white-tiger, dragon, turtle, and bird-like demi-humans. While the tiger and dragon demi-humans seemed the most normal, even with the scales of the dragon demi-humans on their fore-arms and cheeks, the turtle and bird demi-humans were the strangest.

The Bird Demi-humans looked entirely human save for a pair of wings on their back. The turtle demi-humans had a large shell on their backs and a small tail.

'_Alright, if I remember some of the factions worships the dragon instead of the Shield. Please don't go bad._'

"So you are the Shield Hero." One of the dragon demi-humans asked. "You don't seem all that impressive for a Cardinal Hero."

"Watch your tongue around the Shield Hero." Said one of the white-tiger demi-humans. Many of the people behind him agreed, expressing their own distaste for the dragon's words.

'_Why do I bother?_'

Multiple different factions within the council each piped up, giving their own opinions and support, while many of the neutral factions remained quiet. What should have been a quick, productive meeting is quickly turning into a complete headache.

'_This is stupid._'

"If you don't mind," I said loud enough to get everyone's attention, "I'd like this to be at least somewhat productive."

"I agree with the Shield Hero." Said one of the turtle demi-humans before turning to me. "You have come to Siltvelt in order to class-up at the hourglass here. But, you have made no mention of staying here or defending us during the next wave. Could you explain why?"

"Make no mistake, I certainly plan to participate in the next wave here, but my business is not done in Melromarc."

"What could that country have that's so important?" Said a white-tiger. "They have done nothing but criminalize you and ruin your name."

"While they have, those actions were linked entirely to the King and his firstborn daughter. The Queen, however, did not approve of this and planned the apparent princess to clear it."

"How do you possess this knowledge?"

"All the Heroes have knowledge of this world to different degrees, though theirs are lacking. I, however, know both the workings of this world and future events to some degree. But it is centered around large events and has become less reliable because of new occurrences and differences."

"And would these 'differences' entail?"

"I will gladly tell you but before I do, I have two questions of my own I wish to ask. Maybe some follow-up depending on the answers."

"Then please ask."

I held my breath for a second. "Which one of it was you that took my designs?"

The council flinched at my bluntness, not sure how to respond. "I'm sorry, but we don't quite understand what you mean?"

"The armor your soldiers wear are almost carbon copies of the armor I designed for the Militia I created in melromarc. The Bessemer Cauldron was my design as well and though it should be completed, I saw a second one just like it as we were walking through the city." I pulled out the notebook I had drawn out the gear design. "The gear build and mechanism all matched the ones I had designed, so I ask again. Who did it."

Much of the council went silent, except for some murmuring of those trying to figure it out. Looking at the eyes, I could see some of the people looking towards the white-tigers. "I'm not mad. I just wanna know."

Realizing they had been called out, one stood up admitted to it. "... That would be us. The Hakuko."

"How did you come into possession of these blueprints?"

"... We had an operative in Melromarc to keep tabs on you. She saw the designs you created and copied the blueprints to sent them to us. She had relayed much information to us, as well as interesting developments, including those 'vaults' as you call them."

'_They already knew about those!?_'

"Have you found the one located here?"

"Yes, but I thought you had a map of them?"

"I do, but I want to know if you made any attempt at opening them."

"We have but the door to it is massive. We haven't seen a locking mechanism like this before. There is a pedestal in front of it similar to the one you found in the caverns near Melromarc palace."

'_They really have been keeping tabs on me... Wait a Goddamn second._'

"Did you operative happen to get sloppy and almost get caught by us?"

"Yes. She was reprimanded for it greatly."

"Oh thank god, I thought it was some shadow who turned to Church." I said relieved.

"You… Are not mad at this?" One of the councilmen asked confused.

"No, I'm just a little annoyed that you stole my blueprints. But compared to the alternative, it's actually not that bad. The second question was if my party and I could class-up at your Dragons hourglass since Melromarc forbid from doing so for now."

"Uh-Yes. I believe I speak for everyone when I say that would be acceptable." Said one of the council-man. Many of the others agreed with his statement.

"Excellent." I said before turning back to the Hakuko. "Did you tell the other council members of the vaults as well?"

"Yes, as well as the operative we had following you. It was only the blueprints the Hakuko did not talk about."

"Good. Those vaults were part of the differences but it seems you're all well informed about it already. As to why they won't open, they require a key in the form of an Elders Prism. I have one of these keys-"

"Shield Hero." Said the dragon demi-human. Getting a better look at her, I could long black hair and scales over white skin and grey eyes. Her clothes were dark robes and pants built to compensate for her extra appendages. "If you possess knowledge of future events, than it is vital you tell us what you know."

'_This bitch again?_'

"The only information I know that is vital to you is either too far ahead to be certain and reasoning as to why I must return to melromarc. Though one is more 'robust' than the other."

"Then I think we would all appreciate if we knew specifics on what your 'business' in melromarc is."

I glared at her. "The first bit involves the queen's second daughter, Melty, the apparent princess. As I have said her job was to come back to Melromarc and clear my name, but her older sister, Malty, plans to assassinate her and pin the blame on me. The second reason is the Militia I still have stationed in Melromarc. They have great loyalty to me and I do plan to simply leave them.

I summoned my Prisma shield and pulled up the map of the continent, highlighting structures as I went along. "The third reason is more general, involving both the Sword Hero and the vaults. Ren doesn't believe in the crimes I was framed for, and neither does the Bow Hero, but of the two I trust Ren the most. Together we planned on opening one of the vaults giving us access to both access to better equipment and skills. The more long term side of that is the massive structure within Melromarc known as 'The Well.' Its purpose is unknown but I believe it is key to powering all the creations left by the previous Shield Heroes. Its strategic importance is labeled as 'absolute' so there's no question on whether to leave it or not."

"And what is the importance of preventing this assassination?"

'_Excuse me?_'

"Melromarc has had little good relations with Siltvelt. They summoned the Four Heroes when it suppose to be one for each of the major nations, and abuse our kind without fail. If they wish to kill each other, let them."

"If I let the assassination continue, you will have far greater problems than before." I said with anger. "Melty is not like her father or sister. She does not see the Demi-humans as a lesser kind and will assist her mother in rectifying the laws that allow the abuse of your kind. Her father and sister, however, would gladly see your kind left in chains. WithKing and First Princess' actions, they'll be tried for traitors and executed."

She glared back at me irritated but didn't say anything. The rest of the council remained silent.

"Now, anything else left to go over?"

* * *

'_That was… Something._' I thought, walking to the hourglass with my party. Phobos was right when he guessed where it was. We were escorted to the top of the center tower in the palace for our class-up. Escorting us were the Royal guards from before but as we moved it was clear they were far more numerous than we thought.

The chamber holding the hourglass was contained by marble stone, similar to the one in Castle town. Large stone pylons surrounded the Dragons hourglass. There were no walls between the pylon, only railings, letting a strong gust of wind to blow through the tower in the dark night.

The meeting had ended relatively well but with no small amount chastising from our resident dragon member. Luna, upon hearing about this, had been less than friendly afterward. I wasn't either but I held my tongue.

'_I know her kind doesn't worship the Shield Hero like the Hakuko but crap she could at least be polite._'

I had gone first with the class-up, wanting to get an idea for what happened. I walked up to the hourglass and placed my hands on it, a light coming off of the hourglass and a new skill tree appearing in my vision along with a timer. The tree had three options, strength, defense, or magic. While all skills would be enhanced, the selected skill would advance at faster rates and to far greater heights than the other two possibly could.

Strength was the overall measure of one's physical prowess. Their stamina, endurance, and physical power were all tied to these traits. Defense was the measure of fortitude and resistance to all forms of damage. Magic was the most self-explanatory, advancing the limit of advancing magic reservoirs, regeneration, and potency.

'_Lets see, my physical strength in already overwhelming so I don't think that'll be necessary. Defence is already my thing but I suppose that's what class-ups are for. And Magic… It's probably my lowest trait but… The shields I've received from in the heritage series are magic guzzlers. And if I don't have a large reservoir to pull than they'll be almost useless at the higher levels._'

Thinking of the possibilities, I chose magic and watched as my stats all jumped. My strength had a massive increase, alongside my defence. Together they might be increased fifty percent while my magic almost doubled.

As the rest of my party, minus Filo, had gone through and advanced their own stats, I looked down at the clock. It looks as though the wave here was recent and still had a large portion of time left until the next one.

'_That means it might be right between the fourth wave and the 'abduction… Maybe I could… Yeah-yeah that'll work._'

Coming out of my train of thought, I looked at what my party had selected. Luna and Phobos both chose to advance their strength. Raphtalia chose to advance her magic, and Phobos, under Raphtalia's 'tender persuasion,' chose defense.

'_Makes sense. Luna and Phobos are both the most melee situated and Deimos is beat to hell most the time. And with that boost in magic, Raphtalia can be a lot stealthier._'

We left the chamber with the hourglass and headed down to the front of the castle where some of the Hakuko were waiting for us.

"Please Shield Hero, at least allow us to let you meet the heir to the Hakuko family. She is a rather large fan of yours." One of them said.

"If we're keeping with things as they are, then Ren should be approaching the village where we agreed to meet."

"Well, if you are ever around, it will be pleasant to see-"

"Hold it." A new voice said sternly.

'_You've gotta be kidding me._'

Coming up to us was the council-woman from earlier. The same dragon lady who had been a difficult figure for the entirety of the meeting. Now that she was closer, I could see she was rather short, not even coming up my shoulder.

"What is it?" I asked with feigned exhaustion, making it clear I did not enjoy her company.

"What are your plans here?" She asked.

"Do you ever just _not _be a pain in the ass or is that just your thing?" I asked.

"What!?" She yelled.

"I've made it clear what my intentions are. I have told you what I have to do and why I am doing it. What else do you want?"

"Assurance. I need to know that you are coming to fight in the next wave." She said. "We lost too many people and too many soldiers. And while I don't see it, you are a Hero."

'_Concern. That's why._'

"I see. Well how about this," I started. "Your people work on fortifying and training your soldiers here, and prepare best you can. When the wave comes, I show up with a whole new set of stuff you've never seen, and supplementary force to boot."

She seemed surprised but recovered quickly. "Can you move your Militia between Siltvelt and Melromarc?"

"I'll figure it out." I aid with a grin.

"That's not reassuring."

"Hasn't failed me yet. Besides, if you had any idea how many times I've said that in the past two months, you would not doubt it either."

She went to say something more but didn't and only nodded. I nodded back and turned to my party.

"Everyone ready?" I asked. My party all affirmed and I began to fast travel. We were engulfed in a familiar golden light, watching as the scene around us changed from a grand mountain view to a dense forest in front of a village.

"And we're back in Melromarc." I said out loud.

"Carter?" I heard someone shout behind me. Turning around, I could see Ren and his party standing some ways away on the road leading up to the town.

"Oh hey, Ren. How you been?"


	16. Chapter 16, Dungeons and Dragons

**Chapter 16, Dungeons and Dragons**

**13,000... I really didn't follow my own advice with this...**

"Oh hey, Ren. How you been?" I said. He certainly hadn't expected me to show up out of nowhere. As I got closer, I saw Ren glance down at my shield but he didn't seem to know why.

He shook off his surprise and finally answered us. "Yeah just, wasn't expecting you to show up out of nowhere."

I shrugged. "Sounds about right."

"Where did you come from anyway?"

"Siltvelt. Aultcray wouldn't let us class-up in Castle-town so we just went to use theirs."

Ren was speechless. "You already classed-up!?"

I grinned. "Yep. My party members are all above level forty. Except for Filo. She showed up a bit late so she's only in the twenties."

Ren could only let out a pitied laugh. "No wonder your party's so much stronger. Your all leagues ahead of us in levels."

"Oh, we would've been more powerful even if we were lower in levels."

"What? How?" He asked, honestly confused.

"It's a bit of a long explanation. Short version cohesion and weapon and skill variety, and specialization but probably doesn't help too much. You kill that dragon yet?"

"No. We had some complications on the way here. There was an urgent request that came from the border between Siltvelt and Melromarc. Apparently, a giant monster had appeared out of nowhere and the King wanted the heroes to take it out."

"No. Really?" I tried to say, holding back my laughter. "Who went to kill it?"

"Motoyasu. He should be looking for it now-Carter?" He asked, hearing me snickering.

"Yes?"

"... Are you laughing?"

"No. Absolutely not." I said losing what little composure I had. "Why would I ever-AH haha!"

"You had something to do with that, didn't you?"

I shook my head. "Yep. Greatest plan thus far too."

Ren looked at me, trying to figure out how I did it, or even what I did but gave up and instead just walked towards the village.

* * *

"Any particular reason you wanted our parties to eat together?" I asked.

"If we're gonna be working together, I wanted to at least get our two sides acquainted with each other.

"Mhm. Amazing idea." I said, looking across the table. Our parties had each chosen to sit on the same side as their respective heroes and as a result many of them were glaring at each other. "Truly a flawless plan."

Ren ignored the jab. "Now, earlier today-"

"Wait for it."

"-you said that even if you were a lower level, you'd still be stronger than my party."

"There it is."

"Carter, I'm serious."

"I'm almost certain that somewhere before."

Ren growled but ignored the comment. "Why is that?"

I sighed. "Multiple reasons. First and foremost is how we lived these past few months. Everywhere you go, you are revered as a Hero. The King gives you financial backing, and 'living rough' isn't exactly something you're accustomed to. My party, however, has been living without any financial backing and being labeled a criminal isn't helpful either. By all means, we've been living it rougher in the past few weeks than you have in the entire time here."

"But there has to be something else. Some kind of cheat-"

"Ren, I'm gonna be real with you. Finish that sentence and I will break this table across your head." I said. He didn't continue. The rest of his party heard what I said and turned their attention to us. "This isn't the game you played, this is a new world with new rules. The sooner you realize that the faster you'll get stronger and the better our chances of fighting the waves are. Hell, even parts of my foreknowledge have become questionable at best with everything we've run into."

"I… See. Then what have you been doing?"

"Skill variety and specialization. While you just go for the strongest skills and ignore the weaker ones, I keep a whole set of skills and weapons. Some are tailored for specific situations, some able to be adapted to new ones. Absorbing unique material, refining your weapons, advancing their rarity, and mastering multiple skills all contribute to a stronger weapon. I will admit that when it comes to my raw physical strength there is a far different reason.

"And that is?"

"Well…" I said, internally debating what I should say. "I really tell you and not sound like a lunatic."

"He's not wrong." Luna piped in, still glaring at the magician in front of her.

"Look, I'll tell you what I did. I'll show you what I did, show you what gave me my strength, but you're gonna learn some things." I said, begging to draw the attention of the rest of the table. "Things that are gonna leave you feeling uneasy for weeks. Hell, I've started holding conversations with mine and I'm not even completely okay with it."

Ren looked at me for a moment, no doubt realizing the implications of that last sentence, but waved it off. "Carter, we were summoned from another world to fight off waves of monsters with legendary weapons. If there is anyone on this planet that you can say something crazy to, and they believe you, it's gonna be one of the heroes.

* * *

"You want me to do what?" Ren asked. He was currently sitting in a room along with me and Luna. The rest of our parties had all chosen their own. He would go and join them after we had done what I wanted to show him while Luna was here just in case.

Leviathan had told me what Ren had to do but convincing him to do it was easier said than done. Explaining why I wanted him to was even worse. Saying "try and imagine a really dark place within your weapon while talking with your weapon" doesn't make any sense to anyone who doesn't know what you're talking about.

"Just… Close your eyes and concentrate." I said just giving up after the we-stopped-counting-ages-ago-ith time trying to explain.

"How did you even find this out in the first place?"

" I got this gnarly scar across my face, blacked out, and that was when Leviathan started speaking but I don't think that'll quite work for you. Just concentrate, you'll figure it out."

I closed my eyes and concentrated as well, letting the familiar feeling overcome me.

When I opened my eyes, I stood in the familiar area, Leviathan wrapped just outside of the light. The black around us had somewhat brightened. Not enough to see any details along Leviathan's body, but enough to better see the outline of him.

Standing in his own light some ways away was Ren. The light he stood in was strange. It wasn't on the same plane as mine, almost as if someone had raised it and then tilted it. He hadn't noticed me, instead he looked around in an absolute panic, yelling into the black while trying to find his sword.

"This is one of the heroes…?" Leviathan asked, his deep voice sounding from the shadows with disappointment. Over the weeks, both of our speeches had changed drastically. Instead of talk between an ominous creature and an unknowing soul, it was laxer and lacked the fearful mystery. He had still chosen to remain in the shadows however, not letting me see much more than his general shape and the crystal in his head.

"Still better than the other two though." I said, not proud of what I was seeing either.

"That does not speak well of the other Heroes."

"It wasn't supposed to." I said, letting out a sigh. "Just… Let me work my magic."

"You will need more than magic for this." He said looking back at me. "But, I did pick you for a reason, just as my siblings did theirs. I will trust in your ability."

"Thanks mate… Should we say something or just let his sword talk first?"

"Drakos is not unlike me, though she is still quite different. She is less ominous in nature than I but far more sadistic, and certainly more fearful."

"So Drakos is her name. Can I assume a sort of dragon-like form?"

"Yes. The entanglement energy between us going haywire must have caused her to awake as well. We can probably assume the others have begun to stir as well."

I didn't ask about the 'entanglement energies,' thinking it would yield some cryptic information and instead focussed on Ren. I could see a massive blight circling around him. While Leviathan was long and wrapped around many times over, the beast circling Ren was more tall and wide. Still, she was nowhere near Leviathan's scale, but if he was true to his word, then this one would not need size.

Slight flashes of light off a metallic surface instead as to why.

Slowly the figure stopped before letting herself stretch out entirely. Light reflected off of four massive wings lined with razor-sharp metal. The torso of the beast was thin and lengthy with a long tail that crossed into the light, displaying a myriad of bladed thorns along the top.

It wasn't clear, but I could almost make out slow sadistic laughter.

'_Oh, I'm sorry Ren, you probably got the worst one._' I thought but let myself laugh at his unfortunate state.

"Reserve your pity for when you see the other two." Leviathan spoke up with a hint of enjoyment as well.

"Right." I said, trying to think up something, a question came to mind that I had never really asked before. "Hey, while we're waiting for those two to finish up, can I ask you something?" I asked.

"Go ahead."

"Why did you awaken, yet the beast in the other Heroes' weapons remain… Dormant? Or at least not wake up. And please don't give some cryptic answer again."

"I felt that one gnawing at you for some time. Do not fret, that one you may here in full. You see, for much of our existence within the weapons, we remained dulled, our cognitive facilities reverting to basic instinct and automated processes. Our cores were the only part of us that could still operate and react, the crystal embedded in your shield and in my head. When you were accused of your crime, the shield was still forming around you.

"With your realization of Motoyasu's betrayal, the entanglement energy, the energy that links you and I together, became rampant. At the time, my core could not handle the stress, and instinctive reactions expanded my cognitive ability to better control its flow. Though not much, it was enough to bring me back to some sentience. I remained quiet, slowly regaining my consciousness and piecing together the shattered memories and knowledge I still possessed."

"And the duel with Motoyasu? The Warp Shield?" I asked.

"Another burst in rage caused my core to expand further. Much of my mind and yearnings were still coming out of its basic instincts, and I hungered, speeding your growth in an attempt to bring you to larger, more satisfying kills."

"Fairly well thought out for something still using basic instinct."

"I said much of my sentience hadn't formed. My cunning has always been second to none, and was the first to return, along with other memories."

"Of?"

He remained quiet. I raised an eyebrow. There were many things Leviathan wouldn't talk about, saying it because I wasn't ready to hear it. There were very few things that caused him to stop talking entirely. Instead of pressing it, I looked back at Ren and moved to other questions I had.

"What is the Warp series shield anyway? I can't find it in the shield tree and I can't call upon it either."

Leviathan remained silent, looking towards Ren and the beast circling him. The former had calmed down while the ladder was a cackling mess. I was about to ask about Leviathan speaking up again. "It appears she's done scaring the Sword Hero. Let us make ourselves known."

"Yeah." I said, "Hey Ren!"

Ren looked around him before looking up and seeing me. I waved and he waved back, albeit hesitantly.

"Any way to make us closer?" I asked looking up at Leviathan. He didn't answer instead letting the world around us shift for a moment.

"Carter?" Ren asked. Looking forward again, Ren was standing in front of me in the same light with his beast standing in the shadows behind him. Leviathan was coiled up behind me.

"Yep-Oh right." I said gesturing between Ren and Leviathan. "Ren, Leviathan. Leviathan, Ren."

"Leviathan?" Said Drakos. Her voice was higher pitched than Leviathan's but still had a full tone. "This one knows your name already? You must have a great deal of trust in this one, with how reclusive you are."

"Drakos. I must say, I was hoping you would remain asleep." He said with annoyance.

"You wound me with your words." Drakos said.

As I listened to the banter, I looked at Ren who was taking all this less than well. He was looking between me and the two colossal entities above us with disbelief.

"I know you knew about this, but how are you not more surprised!?" Ren asked.

"Oh these two? I didn't know about them until after the duel with Motoyasu."

Ren just crooked his head sideways.

'_I knew this would be difficult to explain._'

* * *

The conversation between Ren, Drakos, Leviathan and me had been interesting to say the least.

As it turns out, Drakos could be just as cryptic if not more so than leviathan. Any question we had concerning the warp had been largely met with the generic "you will know with time," the classic "you are not prepared," or the pleasantly new yet still not helpful "stop asking so many damn questions."

After we had left the mindscape, Ren had begun asking me questions about the Warp.

As if I would be any more helpful.

Some of the questions were things I hadn't considered though, and thus we began tossing ideas back and forth trying to figure out whatever we could. Currently, we were sitting on the floor talking with sword hero while Luna was laying down on one of the beds.

"So what do you know about the Warp?" He asked.

"Not much. From what I can piece together it's like the space between worlds. And I don't mean planets, I mean your world, my world, and this world."

"So, Multiverse theory?"

"Maybe, but I don't think it's quite the same. I think it's more like worlds that are similar but clearly different. If it weren't then we'd probably be fighting a similar version of ourselves, not a completely new array of heroes and weapons."

"... Huh!?" Ren said.

My lips curled in. "Right, you don't know about that."

I looked at Ren and smiled awkwardly.

"Basically, there's this other world that's having waves as well that's sending vassal heroes to kill us 'cause they think that by dooming our world, it'll save theirs."

"... C-"

"And yes, we can survive without destroying either of our worlds."

"How?"

I shrugged. "Pfft. No idea."

"But what about your foreknowledge!? Shouldn't you know something!?"

"Nope. Never got to that part. Also, before I forget." I hunched over and put my hands together. "Don't. Mess. With. The. Turtle. Now repeat it back to me."

"I don't-?"

"I said repeat it back."

"Don't mess with the-wait the Spirit Turtle!?"

"Yes, now repeat it back."

"But what about mind control!?"

"There's no mind control! There is never any mind control…! Maybe at some point but nowhere soon! Now say the damn line!"

"Will you two stop yelling!" Luna yelled.

"And how are you not surprised by this!?" Ren yelled.

"Honestly, you hear enough stuff, it loses its shock value."

"... Look," I started. "I don't _know_ how to save both our worlds. But I have a plan."

"Then tell me!"

"We'll figure it out."

Ren stared at me blankly. "We'll figure… It out…."

I made finger guns. "Yes."

Rens head slowly fell to the floor. "... We're gonna die…"

"Oh silly Ren, we're all gonna die. It's just the matter of when we die we care about."

Ren could only look up at me with a weird mix of confusion and concern. "You have a very dark view of the world, don't you?"

"And that's why I'm religious. Now," I said, clapping my hands, "Repeat the line."

"I hate you. So much."

"Close enough." I said.

"Warp, Carter. What about the Warp?"

"Right…" I looked at Ren and smiled awkwardly again.

"You don't know anything."

"No. I didn't say I know nothing. Just not a lot of anything."

"Well... Can we expect to find another Warp beast?"

"Well, aside from the ons in the other weapons, or unless one shows up here, I doubt it. Though... "

"What?"

I thought about the pope's weapon. '_It's a copy of the other legendary weapons. It could transform between the different weapon forms. But it relied on magic from people to power it… Well, it is a copy. Maybe it can only mimic the transforming ability? And when we fight… Do I tell Ren now?_'

"Carter?"

'_Timelines broke enough as it is. Not like another change is really gonna do anything at this point anyway._'

"Alright Ren, looks like you're getting another glimpse into the near future. But before I tell you, I need you to understand something."

He was taken aback by the immediate change but agreed.

"When I tell you to do something, I'm also gonna tell you what to do. No matter what you do it, how I say, when I say, exactly as I say. None of that bullshit from the second day we were here. You don't, and you run the risk of _really _messing something up, especially with _this_."

"... What is it you would want me to do?"

"Couple hours after the next wave, Malty is gonna try to assassinate her younger sister and pin the blame on me. I'm gonna stop that, but she's gonna accuse me of kidnapping and we'll be on the run for a while because of it. Towards the end of it, we're gonna meet Fitoria, who'll then gonna go off about getting along with the other heroes. At the very end, my party is gonna be teleported near Motoyasu, we fight for a bit 'cause he'll think I killed you and Itsuki, and then the pope from the church shows up with a replica of the legendary weapons and have a big fight.

"While we're on the run, you and Itsuki are gonna investigate the church. Go through some archives, find some sites, stuff like that. You're gonna find where the weapon is being kept but almost be killed by a bomb set at the site. A shadow is gonna teleport you out but it'll be close. You and Itsuki meet up with us for the fight and we have a full battle with the pope."

Ren blinked a few times, not expecting the events I had told him. "Why would the pope want to attack the heroes? Don't they need us to stop the waves?"

"Well, after you three got yourselves a long line of screw-ups, the pope was convinced you were fakes and wanted to instead summon new heroes after killing you."

"But you've been doing good. Wouldn't they need to kill you too."

I shook my head. "Doesn't matter. I'm the demi-loving demon of the shield, remember? The Pope wants me dead anyway."

Ren looked down, conflicted about what to think. "And what would want me to do?"

"Stay quiet and play along with it. Do that until the fight with the pope. We'll have a confrontation towards the middle of the running and you'll convince Itsuki to go investigate the church with you. Just go along with it"

"What about the other two heroes?"

"Useless. Motoyasu is still Malty's bitch-boy and Itsuki doesn't seem all too keen to listen. He won't cooperate with you unless it looks like you're neutral in this."

Ren contemplated what I told him, thinking over what I said. "Alright, I'll do it _if_ you do something I ask."

"Shoot."

"I want in on this thing you gave up the dragon shard for." He said. "You want me to trust you, but I need something to know you trust me. You told me about the shard, but something tells me what you're going for is even more powerful than that."

I grunted. "Ren, what you're asking for isn't just something I can just throughout. I told you what I have so far because I need you to know to be effective and not make mistakes. But I can only have people with a certain degree of trust knowing about this. Don't think I haven't forgotten about the trial. You and Itsuki both stood there and let Motoyasu stab me in the back."

"Weren't you alright with the Militia leaders knowing? And the Siltvelt council?" Luna asked with a raised eyebrow.

Ren stood up. "You already told them!?"

I stood as well, and stood straight up, making sure he remembered the difference in our own size and strength. "One of them is under my direct command. Not to mention I lead them the defense of their village. I've earned my trust and they've earned mine. The other one is the country that _worships me_. If I say, 'don't mess the vaults,' there's only one group I have to worry about and the odds they don't suffer backlash afterward are slim."

Ren grunted. "Alright, so you've told other people, but the other heroes _will _find out. And when they do, they're not gonna be happy to hear you kept this from them."

"Believe me, I am well aware, and I would have had no problem telling you three. But, once again, you ended up stabbing me in the back."

"Alright, I'm sorry." Ren said, surprising me and causing Luna to look up. "I stood by when I should have spoken out and let you get blamed for something you didn't do."

He stepped back, lowering himself into a deep bow. "It was wrong of me to do so. Please, I don't want us to be enemies Carter. We need to work together to stop the waves. If we don't, we, along with this world will die. You know that better than anyone."

I sighed, scratching the back of my head. "You drive a hard bargain, I'll admit."

'_But is it enough to trust him…_'

"Alright. Once we deal with the dragon, I'll take you to the vaults."

Ren looked up, surprised and yet thankful. "Reall-!?"

"Hold up." I cut him off. "Let me make this clear. You've apologized, sincerely from what I can tell. But I need to make sure you realize just what it is I'm taking you to. When my party goes to the vault, we'll take you and _only _you. No one else. And whatever I tell you, you do not repeat. To your party, to the royals, and certainly not to the other heroes."

"But, shouldn't Itsuki and Motoyasu know about this?"

"Itsuki will demand I share the technology contained within the vaults. Odds are he doesn't realize that the moment those nations get a taste of that kind of power, they'll set their sights on each other. And Motoyasu will just relay it to Myne and it's just downhill from there."

"So the vaults contain technology?" He asked, standing up from bow.

I nodded. "And not just basic stuff either. I mean things that look straight out of science fiction, even by my world's standards."

I summoned my Prisma Shield and pulled out the crystal. I tossed the crystal up and let it hover in the air, opening up to the multitude of data and designs contained within. With a swipe of my hand, blueprints and designs opened up. Rising from each page one was a Three-D model. While Ren was taken aback by some of the designs, he still seemed to recognize some of the designs.

Bringing over one of the designs, I opened it up and brought out a sword model. As a construct, it appeared completely blue, but its shape was well defined. The backing for ran the length of the guard with a second bar coming down in front of the handle.

I grabbed the model and handed it to Ren, who took it with curiosity. The blunt edge of the blade opened up to expose a variety of mechanisms and moving pieces. Suddenly a second edge built from pure energy erupted from the blade.

"That right there is a hard-light sword." I said. "The concentrated plasma on that blade is so dense that it's basically solid energy. Just about anything you bring against that blade will melt before they even make contact. Only super-solid materials and energized plates can withstand a cut from that."

Ren looked back at me surprised by the weapon he was holding. "And there's about a thousand other pieces of armor and weapons that can make that look like a fire-cracker in comparison."

I closed the hologram into the Prism and placed it back in my shield. "Starting to see why I can't just through this kind of stuff around?"

Ren looked down at his hand, grabbing at the air as if the blade itself was still there. "Yeah… I'm starting to see why." He said, still comprehending what I said.

"Now, with that said, if you do end up telling your party or someone of the likes, I will break that table from downstairs across your head."

"That specific table?"

"That specific table."

"You make very odd threats."

"I like to call it my inner Heath ledger."

"You mean the Joker?"

"Oh, was he a thing in your world too?"

"That sounds great, but if you two don't mind," Luna said, having not even bat an eye after the apology, "I'd like to get some sleep."

"... She's used to this isn't she?"

"Yep. Honestly, at this point, it's me who's still not use to her." I said scratching my head. He was about to ask why, but I cut him off, "Don't ask."

* * *

The night passed by without a problem. Ren had remained silent about what I had shown him, even when pressed by his party. Come morning, we had grouped up and left the village, making our way up the mountain to combat the dragon.

Currently, I was riding with Luna while walking beside Ren on the path. The trip had been uneventful thus far, save for a few monsters that would appear, and we had picked up some conversation. They were making light conversation while Ren and I talked about our own worlds.

"I'm just saying, BraveHeart Online could be a dark game at times. Especially when the Aftermath-DLC rolled out."

"The aftermath of a massive war-torn world where you play as a character who goes through and tries to repair and rebuild whatever's left while witnessing the horrors of the old war and its remnants? Mate, what you call dark, I call Tuesday. Trust me, dark in my world is way darker than yours."

"Alright, your world sucked. But come one, you gotta admit it's pretty dark." He said looking back at the road.

I mean, I hear you, it's just that hearing it is one thing, living it is another."

"Aren't you some upper-class student though? Wouldn't you be exempt from military service?"

"The purpose was to ensure loyalty and make rebuilding responses far easier. Nobody's exempt."

Ren hummed, wrapping his mind around what such a militaristic society would be like.

"By the way, what is the state of your world anyway?"

"It's got some pretty advanced technology but nothing compared to yours. But as far as events go, the worst we've had would have to be the Great War, but that was almost eighty years ago."

"Oh, you mean World War One?"

Ren stopped walking. "... World war What?"

"Yeah, World War One… Your world didn't have a World War II did it?"

"You had two!?"

"Hell yeah brother. We had a third one too. Did you think I was joking when I said 'what you call grimdark, I call Tuesday'?"

"I thought your world just had the same events as mine but just more spread apart!"

"Okay, hold up." Luna said. "What the hell happened for your worlds to call it a world war?"

"Well, I can't speak for Ren's world, but WWI started in my world because some guy called Archduke Ferdinand was assassinated. Two countries went to war, some treaties and favors started up and then everyone got the idea of conquering the world or something like that. Ironically, it was called the 'war to end all wars' at the time. World War Two started because a German officer named Adolf Hitler rose to power and, wanting to bring Germany back to its former glory because it basically got blamed for everything, started conquering nearby nations, a violation of the treaty they signed.

"He also started this thing then called the Final Solution, now called the Holocaust, where he tried to kill off anyone who wasn't of the 'Arian race,' mainly Jewish people, which is more than a little ironic since under his method of determining Jewish descent he would've been counted as a Jew as well but nobody knew about extermination camps until after they made it to German soil.

"WWIII happened because a religious cult that had been around for God knows how long appeared one day and started waging on every world my people had up to that point. Though their numbers were small, their use of gene editing allowed for the creation of super soldiers that were far more potent than our own. As far as death counts go though, WWI was the smallest at nine-million. WWII had a massive spike however at sixty to seventy million, and WWIII was the largest, at around two billion."

Both Ren and our parties were quiet, unable to rack their heads around the massive number that was. Our parties weren't of any surprise, but Ren should've had some idea about this.

"So, some guy got killed and everyone went to war because of it?"

"Yep, America, the name of my country before the second civil war, was brought in after Germany sent Mexico, a neighboring country, a message saying they'll give Mexico a part of America if they help conquer it. Probably not wanting another war with America, cause last time they lost a _massive _chunk of land that was then called the state of Texas, later the Texas Union, now Texas-district of the American Komissariat. Funny thing is Germany wasn't even the one who caused it. It was some dude from another country called Austria that killed Ferdinand."

"How can you talk about it so casually? Weren't you affected by it too?" Ren said.

"Well, it's probably how we perceive it. For you, it's an event beyond anything that would be thought possible. You know it happened, but you have nothing to compare it to. For me? It's a fact of life I've known ever since I was little. I live in a relatively rebuilt part of the world, make no mistake, but it's far from untouched."

'_Either that or his world was remarkably more calm than mine. Kind of Ironic given how moody he seems all the time._' While most of each party was trying to comprehend the death-toll, one of Rens party members spoke up about something she noticed.

"More than our world can sustain?" Asked one of Ren's party members. She was the only girl in Ren's party and had a strange hairstyle to say the least, with three buns stacked on top of each other. Instead of armor, her attire mainly consisted of robes, signifying a mage class.

I nodded. "In my world, when we were around the same tech-level as this one, a rather clever mathematician calculated that if the population continued to expand, our planet wouldn't be able to produce enough food to maintain it. That changed however with the creation of new farming methods. I forget the date but it was somewhere between five centuries to a millennia ago. Now, across all our planets, our population is somewhere around fifteen billion… This isn't making a lot of sense, is it?"

They all nodded, not having a single clue to my world.

"Well, they don't really know anything about my world either." Ren said.

"You never told them anything about yours?"

"Nothing really interesting happened in mine."

"We're talking about another world here, what is not intere-Wait a second."

"Cart-"

"You were a shut-in weren't you!" I said laughing.

"Oh and you were better?"

"Mate, I was a soldier, an engineer, and a nerd. My friends, even as soldiers too, were some of the biggest geeks I have ever met and I love them for it."

"I thought you were Militia?"

"Militia riflemen are soldiers. They're kinda like this weird mix between police, reserve, and civilian forces. They possess military training but only operate in local areas, usually as supplementary forces to police and military forces, or as immediate response forces. Make no mistake though, we cover everything, even air and sea forces."

"How would they cover land and sea?"

"Evac mainly but there are a few that specialize in combat."

We were about to continue but heard a growl from the mountain. We looked up and saw a faint black shape moving around. It was tiny from where we stood, but it was clear what it was.

"Weapons ready everyone, we're coming up on the dragon." I said. "Ren, have your team pull forward and engage, we'll hang back on standby ready to cover your retreat if need be."

Ren nodded and guided his party further up the mountain while I lead my party to an area with a lot of brush to cover us where we remained mounted and ready to move. While we wouldn't be engaging, we didn't want to agro' the dragon onto us either.

After a few minutes, a second growl erupted from the mountain and it was clear Ren had engaged with his party.

"Will they be alright?" Phobos asked.

"They should be fine." I said, "Can't imagine something happening that's out of the ordinary… Any more than this already is."

As the fighting continued, we would catch glimpses of the dragon. We didn't get a full picture until it had jumped into the air with Ren following suite, delivering a heavy slash attack on its chest.

The dragon itself was, though impressive, was not out of the ordinary from what someone would expect. It was long with dark purple and black scales, a pair of large wings, and massive teeth.

'_Strange._' I heard Leviathan say. It wasn't the first time he spoke up when I wasn't in a trance but it was certainly uncommon.

'_What?_' I thought back.

'_I think I know that dragon._'

'_What? How would you know him?_'

'_He is like Firtoria. Gaelion, the Dragon Emperor I believe his name is. He was around during the previous Heroes. It's not a clear memory, but he is certainly honorable and keeps his word._'

'_Damn. Should we intervene?_'

'_That would be best. He might be able to help us actually._'

"Luna!" I yelled.

"What?" She asked, surprised but the sudden outburst.

"High tail it up the mountain! We have to stop the fight!"

"On it!" She said before bolting off with me. She bounded up the mountain, using the crossing path as steps to jump from.

"Stop fighting!" I yelled, hoping to get their attention.

"Huh?" One of Rens party members asked, looking down the cliff seeing me jump.

"He's friendly, stop fighting!"

"He doesn't seem friendly!" Said the knight before charging the dragon. Gaelion barely acknowledged his presence, letting his tail swat the knight away as he continued to follow Ren.

I grunted. "Luna, get me between Ren and the dragon!"

She didn't say a word, instead of running towards Ren while I moved towards her hind. With a sudden jolt, she lifted her front and slammed it into the ground, throwing her rear into the air and me with it. I landed on my feet and slid on the ground just as Ren and landed as well.

"Carter!?" He yelled in surprise. I didn't say anything, instead of summoning my Prisma Shield and projecting a barrier between us. Gaelion swung to attack the barrier but jolted back and his claws merely bounced off the shield. He backed away for a moment.

"Gaelion!" I yelled. "Calm down."

"That thing has a name!?" Ren yelled.

Gaelion didn't attack, instead he backed away in confusion. He let his front claws come back to the ground as he approached the barrier. Slowly, I let the shield shrink between us.

He growled before speaking with a low gruff voice, not all that different from leviathan.

"The Shield Hero." He said, "then this must be the Sword Hero."

"Yessir." I said, letting my shield fall completely.

"Why do you attack me?" He asked.

"We heard there was a dragon nearby and believed it to be a threat to the near-by village," I said back hastily. "We did not know it was the Dragon Emperor."

"How do you forget something like that!?" Ren whisper yelled.

"Shut up Ren, not now!" I whispered back.

"A misunderstanding it is then." Gaelion said back.

"Yessir. Allow me to apologize. I allowed the Sword to attack without making sure of the situation. The blame falls on me."

"The Sword Hero reports to the Shield Hero?" Gaelion asked with surprise.

"Not exactly, but at the moment it would appear that way."

"Strange. I would have thought you were separated, summoned to different nations."

Ren was about to ask something but I signaled to him that I'll explain later. "It's a bit more complicated than that at the moment. A result of the current King of Melromarc summoning all four against the Queens wishes."

Gaelion didn't respond, instead of raising his head in thought. It didn't take long for him to look down again.

"Very well Shield Hero. I will accept your apology." Gaelion said. I sighed in relief. "For a cost."

'_Goddammit, why is there always cost with these things?_'

"I require the Sword Hero to pay me with a gift. A rare treasure."

"What use would you have for something like that?" Ren asked.

"Ren, he's a dragon. Dragons like shiny things. Hell, I'm pretty sure there's about a million gold worth of stuff in the cave behind him." I said pointing to a cavern just behind Gaelion.

"A million gold you say?" Said the knight, eyeing the cave.

"Mate, I'm not saying that's a bad idea, but I'm also not saying that Gaelion won't eat you whole." I stated matter of factly. The knight looked back at the cave for a moment before looking back up the Gaelion. There was a glint in the dragon's eye, just begging the knight to try it.

I turned back to Ren and whispered to him, "I did kind of get you caught up in this so I'll help you out with and we'll call it even."

Ren nodded before looking back at Gaelion. "We accept these conditions."

"Good. Now go. I will wait for your return."

"Gaelion? What's going on?" Said a new voice. Looking behind Gaelion, a small girl emerged. Demi-human if the dog ears and tail were any indications. She looked ready to cry.

"You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, right?" Ren asked, completely confused but he was seeing. Truth is, I was too.

"Not a clue. If this is part of the original timeline, then I didn't get to this part." I said back.

"Wyndia." Gaelion said to the small girl. "I told you to stay inside."

"But, I did." She whimpered. "And then I couldn't hear the fighting. And I thought-."

She didn't finish her sentence.

'_...Leviathan?_'

'_No idea._'

'_Good to know._'

"Does Dracos know anything?" I asked Ren who now had an annoyed look on his face.

"She knew Gaelion but thought it'd be funny to just see what happened." His annoyed look grew into a scowl. "Hilarious actually."

"You really pulled the short straw out of the two of us."

"Tell me about it."

I turned back to Gaelion who was trying to comfort the small girl. It was a strange sight to say the least.

"Let's go before something else happens." I whispered over to Ren. He nodded and we turned around, motioning for our party members to follow. I glanced back to see Gaelion comforting the small child before continuing down the mountain.

* * *

"... So-" I started.

"No." Ren cut me off.

"I didn't even-"

"Not. A. Word."

"Are you mad I ended up making you need to find some legendary treasure and give it to Gaelion?"

Ren slowly looked up to me. My party had mounted up and was currently on its way to the next vault. Ren had instructed him to return to the village, saying that he had to work some stuff out with me before leaving. They had questioned it at first but Ren made sure that he would return to them as soon as he could. He had hitched a ride with Phobos, walking just a bit behind me with Deimos and Raph at the rear.

"Alright, fair point." I said.

"Why are you like this?"

I chuckled and Ren sighed.

"What about the upcoming wave?"

"Alright, so we got a-oh shit."

"What?"

"That's where-you don't-this is gonna be difficult to explain."

"What is? What's gonna happen?" Ren said with worry, bringing the attention of both our parties.

"So, you know how we were summoned to be this world's heroes with our own legendary weapons?"

"Yes?"

"Well, you see, there's also this other world with their own heroes and weapons, one of which is going to cross over during the wave and try to kill me so that this world falls instead of theirs." Everyone looked up at me with mixed expressions of fear and confusion. The most shocking expression was Luna.

"Why would they only try to kill you!?"

I scratched the back of my head.

"Well, that's because she can curb-stomp everyone else, including you Ren, without really even trying." Ren only looked back with fear. "I'm really the only one who can stand up to them."

Everyone went silent, processing what they had been told. The first reaction was Luna transforming to her human form. I dropped onto the ground and landed on my back. I tried to get up but Luna stood over and pulled my torso up by my chest piece.

"And you waited till now to tell us this!?" She yelled at me.

"I told you guys about the other world stuff, didn't I?"

"Not about the wanting to kill you specifically part!"

"I-... Yeah, I don't have a response to that." I said defeated.

Ren sighed.

"Will the vaults be enough to give us an edge?" He asked.

Luna moved and let me get up. "We'll be fine, even without the vaults, it's really more protecting the people from the waves and getting ourselves some upgrades. But, yes, it should give us an edge."

Luna transformed and I mounted back up. Bringing up the timer in my vision, I saw we had a little more than a week until the next wave.

'_A good amount of time, more than I expected._' I thought. '_Best not waste any of it._'

"Now, come on." I said. "We may be ahead of schedule but we shouldn't waste any of the time we've got."

Ren nodded and we continued our trek towards the vault.

* * *

"We're coming up on the vault." I said closing the map into my Prisma shield. The terrain with the vault was incredibly rugged. To traverse the terrain, Luna and I, alongside Deimos and Ren with a newly acquired Rope Sword, would work in two parts.

First, we would cross the larger and higher peaks, using our rope-series weapons to give our mounts something to pull them up. Once we reached the top, we would then use the same weapons to give the rest of our parties something to hold onto as they climb up.

It was a very time-consuming method but it worked for the more upward cliff faces. But even then we had to take detour routes at many points on the climb as the terrain was too steep for even this method to work. The very top, however, appeared to be a relatively flat area of the mountain

"It's just over this peak. Should be on the top of the plateau."

"About damn time." Deimos grumbled. While our method was tiring on everyone, he was often stuck with the tougher vertical routes, not wanting to trail behind Luna in the case she fell.

I didn't respond, instead of focusing back on the path ahead. Even though we hadn't reached the top, the ground had begun to flatten out, something we were all thankful for. As we came up the last few steps, I noted the rocks at the were unnaturally flat against the mountain top. The trend continued all around the top of the mountain. It looked almost like a line was drawn through the mountain, and everything above it simply disappeared.

In the center was a single bulge metal bulge.

"Now I'm no expert on ancient hero technology," I started with an attempt at light humor, "but I think this is it."

"Then let's crack it open and see what's inside." Deimos said with eagerness. He began approaching the vault but Leviathan spoke up in my head.

'_Stop him._'

Before he could take another step forward, Ren and I grabbed his collar and pulled him back.

"What!? What!?" He asked confused. Ren and I shared a glance, surprised we had both reacted immediately but quickly figured out why. Ren picked up a rock on the ground and threw it forward. It landed on the ground with a thud but nothing happened.

"Nothing. You got any ideas?" Ren asked coming up next us.

I scratched my chin and squinted. I held out my hand and moved it slowly in front of me. It was only warm until it reached above where the stone became smooth. Instantly, my hand felt like it was on fire and I pulled it back, waving it around to shake off the pain.

"What happened?" Ren asked, watching me suddenly whip back in pain.

"No idea, but whatever it is it hurts like hell… Phobos, you got some fruit on you? I want to try something." I asked. He nodded, taking out an apple he had stored in his bag. showed the fruit to Ren. "Bio-material. High water content."

I threw the apple forward and this time it erupted in an explosion of burnt insides and steam. The air around where the seed erupted shimmered for a moment before returning to normal.

"Oh no, not one of those."

"You know what it is?" Ren asked

"Heat traps. Uses radio waves radiation tuned to affect water."

"Carter I am a gamer, not an engineer."

"Short version is certain materials heat up when exposed to the right frequency of radio waves. What this is is basically a giant microwave, only instead of warming your food, it explodes in a giant mess, and you can probably guess what that'll do to a person."

"How'd you guess that?" Ren asked.

"Not the first time I've seen something like that." I said, much to Ren's surprise and confusion. "You get tipped off from Drakos?

"Yeah. She said 'there he goes' and I knew something was about to happen."

"That's... Unsettling." I commented.

"Well, how do we get there now?"

"Do you have some kind of shield?" Luna asked.

"No. At Least not something big enough for multiple people. Maybe..." I brought out my Prsma shield and let the crystal hover in my hand. Light shot out of the crystal, illuminating the barrier between us and the vault. It had a steady flow upward but didn't seem to go more than two feet in.

Bringing the crystal forward, the barrier began to slowly separate, giving us a passageway.

"Alright, when in doubt, use the Prisma Shield." I turned back to the parties. "Head on through, I'll go last so the passage doesn't close."

"I gotta get one of those." Ren said as he walked through. Everyone followed him, with myself going through last. We began walking towards the vault again with myself in front with the Prisma, looking out for any more traps.

We didn't see any but that still left one more thing to get past.

"That is a big damn door." Phobos said. True to his word, it was massive. The rounded metal looked to be thrice as tall as anyone here and equally as wide. Running down the middle of the silvery door was a single sliver. The walls encasing the door came down into the ground at a steady angle and the right was a pedestal similar to the first one we encountered in the caves.

"No kidding." I said walking over to the pedestal. I took the Prism and placed it into the pedestal, a familiar dot forming just above the crystal. I placed two fingers on the dot and drew a circle around the crystal with it. Light ran down the sides of the pedestal and into the door.

The sound of flowing energy became known as three rings formed on the door, cut down the middle by the sliver in the plates. The rings rotated, the middle rotating a different direction than the first and third and all of them moving at different speeds.

After a few moments, the rings were aligned once more and disappeared. With a heavy metal hiss, the doors began to slide apart but stopped halfway. The sound of power flowing quickly became silent and the pathway behind the door went dark.

"Power must be out." I commented.

"These structures are centuries old, remember? Something is bound to break within that time." Ren said.

I nodded as I picked up the crystal and shined a light down the path. The tunnel was hexagon-shaped, with dim light coming from a break between the top and bottom halves, most likely residual energy. The downward slope carried on for a while before leveling out.

Ren and I looked at each other and nodded before heading down the passageway. Ren summoned his own fire sword, the flames adding a bit more light to the passageway. We took a few steps forward before realizing something.

The others weren't following. We turned around to see them all standing at the top, looking down but not entering.

"Come on y'all, what are ya' waiting for?" I asked.

"You know our track-record with tunnels like this!" Luna said. "First it was a mini-boos from the first wave! Then it was a giant cactus plant! What's gonna be in here!?"

"And it's really dark too." Filo added.

I rolled my eyes. "Alright, suit yourself, that just means more loot for me."

"Huh?" Luna said confused.

"Oh I wonder what could be here. A full set of power armor perhaps?" I said out loud as I began walking down further. "Maybe I could find a gravity hammer and put the mechanism in a new shield.

Phobos grumbled.

"Perhaps a plasma-based pair of hatchets? Those would make good edges for my Voridis shield."

Than Deimos.

"What about hard light talons? Those would look nice on my armor."

Filo.

"Maybe even a-"

"Okay fine!" Luna said as she started walking down. The rest of my party was following with her. She walked up beside me and I put an arm around her waist and pulled her into a side hug. She grumbled but leaned in for a moment.

"Thank you." I said before we continued down the passage. "You coming Ren?"

"Yeah, I'll cover the rear.." He said, letting the others in my party walk by him.

"Good idea." I said before turning around, looking into the black hallway. I paused."Yeah. Definitely creepy."

We walked down the path to where the floor evened out. Looking ahead, the pathway began to curve to the right. As we followed the path, the tunnel became darker and darker until the pathway ended and the ceiling and floor opened into a large chamber.

The walkway split left and right with a railing dividing it and a large drop-off.

"This is weird." I heard Deimos whisper. "What do you think this place is made of?"

"My guess would be tungsten or even titanium but knowing the material stockpile Johnson had, it may be something even stronger."

Walking up to the railway, I focussed the light down. The drop off wasn't great, but we were certainly high up, overlooking a seemingly open area. Scanning over, I could make out hallways, platforms, and machines decorating the walls and areas of the space. Struts ran the height of the wall. At the edges of the wall next to the platform appeared to be a cargo platform of some sort.

'_Damn. With the power out, those are pretty much useless._'

Near the back was a raised, diamond-shaped platform opposite of what I assumed were fabricators. Towards one side were different consoles but the center was still wide open.

"That should be the control console." I said. "Deimos, hand me one of your hatchets."

He did and I took out a cloth and wrapped it around the blade. Taking out some of my oil, I doused the cloth and lit it, creating a makeshift torch. I summoned my rope shield and unwinded it a bit, handing some to Phobos.

"Stay up here. I'll head down and get the power running again."

Phobos nodded and held the rope and I repelled down. I got about halfway before I heard Phobos yell and rope become loose.

'Oh-'

"Shit!" I yelled as I fell towards the bottom. I hit the ground with a metallic thud.

"That hurt." I grumbled as I slowly got up. "Ya'll good up there?"

"Yeah." I heard Luna say. "Deimos said he saw something and bumped Phobos, making him drop the rope."

'_Of course, that's why._' I thought, rubbing the back of my head. Shining the light around the chamber, I could better make out details of the machinery. They were large and rectangular with clear sides and an open front. Multiple arms lay unmoving in the fabricators.

I walked up to the machines and looked inside, impressed by the complexity of the machinery. At the back was a large circle with a sharpened. The ends of each arm looked like an open extruder and laser head with smaller claws at the end. At the bottom was a series of small pistons.

'_This thing looks like a lathe, assembler, laser cutter, and 3D printer all in one, not to mention the pieces that I don't recognize._'

"Carter, what're you doing?" Ren yelled down somewhat irritated.

"Sorry," I yelled back. "got distracted."

As I started walking, I quickly stopped and looked around the open space. I could've sworn I heard the sound of low metallic stomping but it stopped as I did.

'_Must've been my imagination._' I thought as I started walking again. But as I did, the sound picked up once more and I stopped and turned around. Once again, I couldn't see anything that would make that noise in its low-power state.

Until I heard the stomping behind me.

I quickly turned around and came face to face with a hulking metal frame. It was covered with angled plates and stood so tall that I could only see what I assumed was its knees.

"What the-!" I was cut off by a giant fist throwing me across the chamber. I landed on my back and rolled backward into a crouch, sliding across the ground. "Ren! Get down here!"

"On it!" He yelled, dropping down from the walkway. I summoned my Thorn Shield and fired a few shots into the dark. I growled when they pinged against the wall, nowhere close to me or where the giant was. The Prism had remained by me and illuminated the immediate area, giving something of a haven.

"Carter!" Ren said as he ran up to. We rotated and came back to back in the chamber, keeping an eye out. "What are we dealing with?" he asked.

"Massive, heavily armored, and unnaturally quiet. Likely robotic in nature."

"Will our attacks pierce its plating?"

"Most likely not. The best we can do is find some way to shut it down or pacify it."

"Got a plan?"

"Listen for the nearest ping." I said before summoning my Thorn Shield, firing randomly into the surrounding area.

Right beside us.

"Split!" I yelled as Ren jumped into the shadows while I dodged left, narrowly avoiding a fist aimed for where we previously were.

"Ren, light that thing up!"

"On it!" He yelled. He snatched an unused vial of oil from his back pouch and threw it where the behemoth's chest was. I heard the vial shatter the oil spill out. Orange light illuminated his position as he sent a small wave of fire towards the golem. The oil caught and began to spread across the chest of the giant frame.

As the flames from the fire spread, they illuminated the mech's triangular features. Its head was the first thing we saw. Its forehead was wide and came to a point before cutting off. It's chin mirrored it's forehead though it was not as wide.

Slowly, it stood up, reaching higher and higher until the fire was level with the walkway we had jumped from. Lights sparked to life along its chassis, illuminating its frame. Long triangular plates made up the majority of its form, with a massive square prism resting on its the point under the chest plate.

"You have gotta be shitting me." I said out loud. The behemoth began walking towards me, picking up it's pace with each step. It reared it's massive hand back and I brought my shield up. Its fist impacted my shield with so much force metal below me began to groan under the stress and my legs about to buckle, but I held firm.

I grunted and with a solid thrust, pushed the metal fist back and sent my own fist.

Metal warped and bent around my hand as its fingers caved in and I smirked as it reared back.

But the small feeling of triumph quickly disappeared as the metal straightened and smoothed out once more, the damage done having all but disappeared.

"It can regenerate!?" I yelled as its second hand came down and grabbed my arms and chest, locking me in place. I felt my feet leave the ground as it picked me up like a small toy and brought me up to it's metal face.

"Meteor Sword!" Ren yelled as he charged the behemoth, sending a slash of exploding flame towards the giant. The giant turned it's chest, letting the attack ping off it's shoulder.

Ren continued his charge, jumping up to strike it's head but was swatted away with a backhand. He impacted the metal wall with a painful thud and fell to the ground. He grunted trying to get up but fell back to the ground.

The pressure around me grew and the giant hand began to tighten. I yelled as the pain became too much to stay quiet.

"Alpha!" I heard yelled from the walkway before the grip around me disappeared and I fell to the ground. I landed on my stomach with a thud and for the second time at the last minute, I was laid out on the metal floor. I rolled over onto my back and looked up at the metal giant slowly walking backward.

I strained my eyes to look up before a blinding light came down and I closed my eyes.

"Your strength and endurance are impressive, along with your strategies, but your inability to damage me past your initial hit is concerning." Said a deep mechanical voice. Looking over, I could see the giant staring at me while its head turned toward Ren. "You possess cohesion and good speed, however, your attacks lack backing and your defense is deplorable."

Ren and I looked at each other in confusion before groaning.

'_He's a Goddamn drill instructor._'

Slowly we picked ourselves off the floor, the mechanical giant waiting patiently as we did.

"What the hell are you?" Ren yelled at the machine, still hunched over with his hands on his knees.

"My designation is Sentinel." It said. "I was built to watch over the creations left by the Shield Heroes."

'_Shield Heroes?_'

"Isn't there only at a time?" I asked.

"In the same way one man cannot build a new world, no one Hero can create a network as advanced nor as wide-reaching as the one you have discovered. I am the culmination of all their previous works, each one built up from the previous to defend this world from threats unlike any other."

I straightened myself and stretched my shoulders, the feeling of giving some pleasure after the serious ass-kicking I had just received.

"Why would the Shield Heroes wish to build something like this to combat the waves? Isn't that what all the Heroes are for?" Ren asked.

"The waves? Do you not know?" The Sentinel asked with confusion.

"Know about what?"

Sentinel without a mechanical hum as he knelt down.

"Come here Sword Hero." Sentinel said. "You too Shield Hero."

We obliged and walked over to frame. He held his hand near his chest and a piece of the prism broke away into a perfect square. The new Prism hovered over his hand as he moved it near Ren, the gap in his own chest pulsing inward as the gap filled. "Take it."

Ren grabbed the Prism and placed it in his own weapon. The sword quickly remodeled itself around the Prism, placing it at the center of the weapon between the guard, hilt, and blade. The Guard widened, creating a diamond shape and letting the crystal float within the weapon. The blade of the weapon grew longer and wider and became more angular towards the end.

'_Must be his version of the Prisma Shield._'

"The crystal you possess and the one of the Shield heroes and linked. Inscribed in them is a new set of data that, should you meet a requirement will unlock, will explain the purpose of the vaults and the Shield Heroes' creations. Along with it is a new series you will be able to summon, courtesy of my own creation."

"Why the secrets?" I asked. "Why not tell us now?"

"The human mind is a fickle thing." Sentinel answered. "It has an incredible ability to simply deny reality it pleases. I can only trust you to believe my full purpose until answers until reality answers your questions for you."

'_Leviathan?_'

He didn't answer.

"However I will not bar you from using this facility. Though small, I believe it will prove a pivotal piece in your advancement." Sentinel turned around and began walking towards an empty wall. In a rapid spark, a portal opened in front of him, large enough to compensate for the machine's massive size.

"Wait!" I yelled. "Why did you come here, to begin with? It couldn't have been to just kick our asses and give us some information."

"Your right, it wasn't."

"Then what else?" I questioned.

Sentinel didn't answer, instead, he walked through the portal, letting it close behind him.

"Haven't known him for more than a minute and I already think he's a prick." I mumbled under my breath.

"So apparently he learned something but doesn't want to tell us." Ren said as he walked over to me.

"Our individual power levels maybe?" I suggested but Ren just shrugged.

We heard the sound of machinery moving and turned around to see our parties heading down on the lift. When they reached the bottom, my party ran over to me.

"Oh hey-" I was cut off by Luna jumping onto me.

"Don't… Do that… Again." She said worriedly.

'_Should I say something… Nah, that sounds like a bad idea._'

"Well Carter," Ren said, walking over to the fabricators, "think you can get these going?"

"Let me see." I said, prying Luna from me and walking over to the console. I took out my own Prisma and placed it in the console. The familiar pyramid constructed itself around the platform and I was greeted with five new files. The first one was red and wouldn't open, the other four were linked together.

'_Sentinel series. Sounds promising all things considered._' I pressed on the files and one disappeared. I was given an alert that I have received the Sentinel Series. '_Storing weapon series within the Prism. Nifty._'

The first Shield was the Teleporter Shield Mk.I. The shield allowed me to open a portal similar to the one Sentinel had used. Unlike fast travel, this one could be used in rapid succession. However, the portals could only be opened at short ranges unless it was in the range of a tele-beacon, something I wasn't even aware existed..

'_Mk.I. It must be just the basic version of the shield. Unique in its ability, and certainly helpful, but highly limited in its power. Power efficiency is probably a factor as well._'

I summoned the Shield to try it out. The shield itself appeared as two rings, on my arm, with one ring smaller and within the other. Smaller components lined the inner side of both with a small amount of energy swirling within its center.

"What's that?" Deimos asked.

"Sentinel series. Teleporter Shield Mk.I to be specific. Apparently something that frame left for us." I held my hand out a portal appeared in front of me with a second appearing on the other side of the room. I stuck my hand through the portal and was taken aback to see it appear in the other. "Alright, that's cool."

The second shield was the Twin Sentinels Shield Mk.I. I summoned the shield and found it two be a simple pointed, geometric plate on my arm. It went just past my knuckle and back to my elbow with the pointed end. Light bent and shifted around my hand as a copy of the shield appeared on my other arm.

'_Sweet, I get two of them. Now, let's see... shield mechanisms, extends a blade from the shield for offensive purpose, nice, heated blade, self-explanatory… energy blade?_'

"What the…?" I focussed on the shields on my arm. Slowly I felt magic begin to drain from me into the weapons and new plates extended from all sides of the shield as energy blades sparked to life. They were almost three feet long and as wide as the shield itself, ending abruptly with a flat head.

"Oh no." Ren said walking up to the platform. "Why do I suddenly feel less safe around you?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Relax, I know what I'm doing."

"Said no one ever."

I ignored the remark and continued looking through the new shield.

The third shield was by far the strangest of the ones I found.

'_The Gauss Shield-I? It couldn't…_' I thought to myself. I held my shield in front of me and felt magic pour into the weapon as I began summoning it. The base plate was a larger, more geometric version of my default shield, but with a handle towards the back. Grabbing the handle, I pulled the shield forward as pieces grew from both in front and behind the face and a second handle appeared for my other hand.

Two long bars shot out from the face of the shield, growing wider as the segment behind the shield grew heavier.

It's change in weight was so fast that I wasn't prepared for my arms bent under the weight, dropping the new weapon on the floor. As the pieces finished, I finally got a good look at the finished weapon. It was made from a silvery metal and was as long as I was tall. Its weight was immense, easily half a ton. Even with my enhanced strength, I struggled to move while holding the piece. Checking my magic, I noticed that a sizable piece of my reserves had been used just summoning the weapon.

'_This isn't even a shield! It's a damn artillery piece!_'

"Oh, I gotta try this thing out." I said as I looked at my party.

"What the hell is that!?" Ren yelled as he looked at the shield.

"Gauss shield Mk.1." I said, the grin widening across my face as realization dawned on me.

"Mark… One?" He said slowly.

"Yep." I chuckled.

Ren didn't say anything as he looked over the machine himself. I changed my shield back to its default version, not wanting to handle the weight any longer.

"I'm gonna get those fabricators running." I said, shaking my arms out.

"You have strength unparalleled by anyone in this world and your arms are tired from holding it?" Phobos said.

"Well, that should give you a good idea for how heavy it is." I said.

After catching my breath, I began looking through the files I had left open for armors and weapons to begin building. Some pieces I had already known about, such as the Gravity hammer and energy hatchets, but others were more subtle, such as a hook attachment for my rope shield or a set of pieces for my light that would upgrade it to a Hardlight Shield.

More utility-based pieces such as the M.I.U, or Mobile Inventory Unit, were options as well. The equipment stored items similar to an inventory from gaming only this one was a piece of real technology.

'_Why don't I have an inventory space in my weapon?_'

'Alert: Inventory added.'

'_..._' I started chuckling before screaming out in the vault. It only lasted two seconds before my upper half dropped forward with my arms dangling. All who were present will attest that was the fastest change in moods they'd ever seen.

"... You good?" Deimos asked, not sure how to respond to the three mood shifts I just went through.

"Yeah… Just," I looked up with a stupid smile under my mask, "really hating myself right now."

Ren the only person to laugh.

"Screw it." I said as I began opening a new panel for the three assemblers and started flicking different items into the assembly queue. "Let's go with this, this, not those, that, these, why not, ooh-these look fun, that's cool, that's not… The hell is-eh why not, and we'll finish it with a whole lot of these."

Bringing up the function programs in a new panel, I noticed a few unique programs that weren't open before. Most were just programs that let the machines function or translated the designs into something the machines could use, but there were two that caught my attention immediately.

The first was a self-compression program. Curious, I pressed it and looked over to the fabricators. A blue hue encompassed each machine, the familiar grid forming around them with it. Quickly, each grid piece shrunk into a perfect square until it disappeared, only leaving a small pack in its place.

"You know," I said. "The longer I play around with this, the more it feels like an actual game."

Ren only nodded. "Can you unpack them?"

"Uhhhh..." I said as I looked back over the program until I found what I was looking for. "Yes, I can."

With the press of a button, a hologram of the machines appeared before rematerializing where they once were.

"I'm taking these to Riyute." I said to my party.

"Don't they need power?" Phobos asked.

"Yes, however they seem to be powered by a… Transference Prism? Linked in a similar way to Eldar Prisms, blah blah, powered by The Well, and that's where that ends-alright, basically they are always gonna be powered."

"The Well?" Ren asked.

I pointed at him. "I didn't tell you about that did I?"

Ren tilted his head.

"I'll tell you about it on the way." I said waving it off before looking back through the programs. The second program, though not as impressive, was arguably just as important.

A design program.

Engineers going into any sort of design field had to be experienced in design software, especially those in RnD fields for modeling prototypes and tracking data. If there was one linked to the machines?

'_Alright, clear everything else. __Oh, the bad ideas I could build._'

* * *

"Should I be worried?" I asked one of Carter's party members. Even with his mask, the grin on his face was clear.

"It either means he has a really bad idea that's gonna end really well or a really good idea that's gonna really bad." Luna said. "We'll be fine… I think."

That didn't calm my nerves.

Immediately he went to work designing what came to mind. Almost naturally, shapes began to take form into more complex pieces. Most were simple, but others were complex and I was left scratching my head trying to figure out what I was looking at.

In what appeared as record time, he had two blueprints complete and the smile on his face doubled. He closed both and dragged them into what I assumed was the panel controlling the assemblers.

He mumbled something to himself before waving it off and spamming the arrow above the number for how many he wanted to be built.

I walked up to his side and watched as the number entered the triple digits before moving onto the other file and writing out a five-digit number.

"What are you making?" I asked him.

"You'll see." He said jittery. With the press of a button, the assemblers became active, the various tools within them quickly moving to create whatever he had requested from them.

He ran over to the machines and watched in on the rightmost assembler like a giddy child. His partner Luna and I spared a glance at each other before we walked over to see what it was.

I went wide-eyed. Luna, or anyone else for that matter, wouldn't know what this was, not by a long shot.

But I, and certainly Carter, would know exactly what it was. I didn't speak as he pulled out the device and one of its counterparts. Even though I knew it was advanced beyond reason, I was still taken aback by how fast the machine produced the pieces.

He placed the cartridge into the bottom of the other and pulled back a handle on the top of the weapon. A metal cling filling the room.

"This is gonna be fun." He said.


	17. Training Days

**Chapter 17, Training Days**

Fifty thousand.

Fifty thousand rounds of ammunition!

Who needs fifty-thousand rounds of ammunition!?

John C. Carter! That's who!

And he said it was small!

Carter printed out fifty thousand rounds of ammunition and he said it was a light! And that's not even counting the other hundreds of thousands of rounds and shells and explosives he printed out for the four other guns he designed!

'_Who the hell needs that much ammunition for two hundred people!?_'

Of course, he had reasons and facts to justify it. Back-up ammunition and field ammunition and soldier specialization and target management, going into great detail on even the caliber of each round.

"The standard troop rifle will be done with 12.5mmx50mm while the automatic weapons will chamber rounds more similar to 7.62x39mm. Shotguns will chamber ten-gauge and each one will be fit for a bayonet mount. Heavy weapons like the RPG will be armed with a backup pistol weapon in the case they and their assistant grenadier run out of explosive ammo." He would drone on and on about ammunition types and how they would fly, impact, and damage, effectively winning every argument we could come up with before we even came up with them.

Of course when we asked how he was going to transport it all he proceeded to stuff it all in his shield.

But I wasn't thinking of that right now.

Right now I was thinking "What the hell are you gonna shoot with that!?"

"The mountain, obviously." He answered plainly while summoning his Gauss Shield. The summoning had gone far smoother this time. Though his arms sagged with the weight, he didn't drop the weapon upon receiving it. "I'd stand back if I were you."

Already knowing that there was nothing I could say and certainly not needing to be told twice, I stood back as he took aim at a cliff near the mountainside. He pulled the trigger and I watched as light blue energy sparked between the rails of the weapon, the whir of energy growing louder and louder before letting loose an electric boom.

The weapon rocked back as a round of solid plasma launched from the weapon. The shot pierced the cliff and penetrated deep into the stone before exploding in a show of blue fire and smoke.

Carter let out a hearty laugh while I rushed to the cliffside trying to get a better view of the destruction.

"What the Hell..." I said in awe at the destruction caused.

"Hold up, get back, I want to fire a few more rounds." He said eagerly. Not wanting to get in the way, I jumped back and let Carter take aim and fire away.

And fire away he did. Round after round was sent down, effectively leveling out that entire portion of the cliffside. I ran up to the side of the plateau once again to look out at the rubble. Much of the rock had been disintegrated, replaced with black ash and molten blue rock that was flowing down the slope.

I didn't say anything, instead he turned around to look at Carter.

Who had collapsed on the ground while his Gauss Shield transformed back into its default form.

"Carter! What happened!?"

"I'm out mate." He groaned.

"Of what?"

"Magic. I got off five shots before I was empty."

"Completely?"

"Yep." He yawned. "I'm just gonna stay here for a little bit."

"Don't you dare fall asleep." I said annoyed.

He didn't say anything.

"Carter?" I asked. He still didn't respond. I walked up and kicked his side but he remained motionless. I sighed and didn't bother trying anything else. Instead I walked back over to the vault, letting him snooze in the sun.

*Break_

We had returned to Riyute after collecting our newfound weapons and tools. For me, I built a new hook for my Rope Shield, and the additional plates to my light shield, turning both into a Grapple Shield and Hardlight Shield respectively. Ren received a hook for his Rope Sword as well as a Plasma Sword.

Our parties all received upgraded versions of their own weapons. Phobos received the gravity hammer, Deimos, his energy hatchets, and Luna a Phase Sword. Phobos' gravity hammer would create an outward shockwave, causing area of effect damage. Deimos' hatchets were similar to Rens sword, as it used focussed energy to melt away materials. Lunas' sword, unlike Ren or Deimos, used pulsing energy to cause molecules to separate from each other.

I had offered Ren some weapons as I had already taught my Division heads, along with a few of their captains, how to use them. They were currently training their own men. With such limited time, we would only be able to train a select number to where I felt comfortable putting them in combat. They would then pick those who were most adept in the lessons and send them to me where I'd finish their training with a firing range I had some builders construct.

Though it wasn't perfect, the rest of the soldiers would receive training after the next wave from the more experienced users while I was running around with Melty. They had the fabricators for more ammo but the hardest part was the tactics.

Most of our original tactics involved phalanx and divide and conquer techniques. With firearms, we were operating as a more defensive force with firing lines operating first, and melee troops coming in after enemies came to close. And while I was on the run, they'd be doing another transition to combat techniques more similar to the ones used by modern military in my world.

The only ones left to train was my party. However, most of my party was quickly dissuaded by the loud bang that came from firing rifles. It was an oversight of mine when designing the weapons and would require me to design either suppressors for every rifle or mass-produced ear-plugs. Even with the dissuasion, one of my party members was still quite adamant about learning.

"Wait, so this ones the pistol?" Luna asked, picking up a 1911 style pistol from a table with the four other weapon types and associated ammunitions strewn across it. Behind the table was the rest of my party some ways back, watching me teach Luna. I hadn't changed much of the pistol's base design as it still possessed the same sleek black metal frame and still referred to it as the 1911.

The other four weapons varied greatly in size and function. Each name was the abbreviation for their distinctive traits followed by a numerical designation, similar to rifles names back in my world. R-1a1 rifles, Hemlocks, were the first one I designed. They were long-rifles, similar to the M-14 rifle but with a larger barrel, bayonets, and a black finish on the stock.

R-1a2's, Spitfires, where the automatic variant. Though they were built with shorter barrels and chambered smaller calibers, they made up for it in rate of fire, boasting the highest of the five designs. Their magazines were especially large however, being a specially designed drum mag that held eighty rounds it.

S-1's, the Mastiff, where the shotgun variant, being similar to a standard pump-action but were loaded via magazine as well. Unlike the other weapons, this one had multiple ammo types, coming in the form of buck-shot and slug rounds. Buck shots were best for tearing through unarmored targets while slug rounds could punch through armored targets.

The final and largest of the new weapons was the E-1, the Archer. It was the most destructive weapon, firing Rocket Propelled Explosives. It was built for heavily armored targets that standard rifles wouldn't couldn't penetrate or for thinning large groups in single shots. It was a long tube in two segments with two handles and shoulder rest. Reloading it was more complicated. Instead of placing a new magazine, the weapon had to slide open and a new round placed into the tube.

Though this weapon was a boon to Militia forces, using it in range of friendlies was incredibly dangerous. A system of flares were instead used. The technology wasn't new, quite the opposite. Instead, it had been repurposed with different colors.

Blue flares signified a position for grenadiers to fire upon. Red was an emergency beacon. Green meant friendly position or victory. Yellow meant retreat. Each flare could either be thrown manually or fired from a flare gun, another piece of equipment I had added to my gear.

"Yes. That one will act more like a secondary or close-quarters weapons should the standard rifle no longer be the better option.

"Alright. And to fire it, I need a loaded magazine?"

"Yep."

"And I put it in like this?" Luna asked holding a magazine for the pistol just below the grip where a large hole was. While it was the correct spot, the magazine was backward.

I grabbed it, turned it around, and handed it back to her.

"Wrong direction." I simply said as she loaded the magazine. "Now, chamber the round."

Luna nodded and grabbed the slide of the pistol. She pulled it back and released it, letting out a satisfying cling. Her movements were awkward and slow, but it was to be expected.

"Good. Now aim it."

"Right… How do I do that again?"

"Put one hand under the grip and line up the forward and rear sight so that the front piece is in between the rear." I said pointing to the different parts of the pistol. She followed the instructions well but her stance was awkward. "Spread your feet, one in front of the other, and center your weight. That'll steady your aim."

I took a step back and examined her form. It was awkward and it looked like she was tensed up while holding the position instead of relaxed, but that's simply overcome with time.

"It's good. Couple rough spots, but not bad overall. Once you get a bit more experience with it, we can start working on your speed."

"Speed? You mean how fast I can reload?"

"Yeah. When I was in the Militia back in my world, our drill sergeant ran it through us until it became automatic. Normally we would get that way naturally, but with how we reloaded we needed it to be more muscle memory than conscious thought."

"How so?"

"Well, our guns would never leave the fight. So what I mean by that is when we reload our weapons are still pointing forward and we're still aiming down the sights. The only thing that moves is one arm with a mag, and one finger near the trigger. Anything more, or if it's not fast enough, then you're not doing it right."

"How fast was fast enough?"

"Uh-let me show you." I said. I put my shield on my hip to make handling the weapon easier and picked up a Hemlock and two magazines. It loaded the first one in the rifle and put the second one in one of the six pouches I had added to the front of my armor. Extra ammo and one of each rifle was stored within my shield, with a pistol kept on my hip opposite of my flare gun.

Though I wouldn't be able to use it in combat, it would be handy should one of my men or party members need it, or if I needed to scare someone with a bang.

I took aim at a target but didn't fire a round. In one fluent motion, I ejected the magazine, loaded a new one, and chambered the round. Overall, it took almost half a second.

"Still got it." I grinned while lowering the rifle.

"What?" Luna asked, surprised by how fast I was able to reload.

"I told you it was fast." I said with a chuckle. "Trust me, it gets crazier when I start shooting."

"You're not gonna give a demonstration of that too are you?"

"Nope. I'll wait until… Can I even fire these?" I thought to myself. The shield restricted me from using weapons other than itself. The fact that I couldn't use bows meant it didn't distinguish from ranged weapons. But what about using it as a tool?

I checked to make sure Luna was standing behind before taking aim at a target, I got ready to fire but also for if the weapon flew out of my hands. Letting out a slow breath, I pulled the trigger.

With a heavy bang, the rifle went off and the bullet landed dead center of the target.

'_Sweet._' I thought to myself. '_But what if…_'

To test what would happen, I imagined myself aiming the rifle at Motoyasu. With a spark of lightning, the rifle flew out of my hand. Had Luna not jumped up and caught the rifle, it would have landed on the ground and possibly gone off again. She handed the rifle back to me and took it.

"Thank you." I said somewhat disappointed. '_So if I use the rifle to fire at inanimate objects, it registers as a tool, the same way as a utility knife. But thinking about using as a weapon causes it to register as one._'

"Alright, so I can still teach the soldiers to use the rifles." I said looking over the rifle. Luna however was rubbing her ears in pain. "You alright?"

"Yeah. It's just loud." She said.

'_I gotta get those earplugs built._' I thought to myself. "Well, if it hurts then you might want to stand over with the rest of the party. I'm gonna take a few practice shots to get back in the swing of it."

Luna nodded and went to stand with the others while I aimed at the targets. The Targets themselves were wooden beams set to hold rings at varying distances. The rows were built at forty, sixty, and eighty yards back from the firing line. Not difficult for more experienced shooters, especially forty yards, so for first-timers it would work well for training.

I let out a short breath before firing off a volley of rounds at the eighty-yard target. I fired until the gun clicked empty. I laid the rifle down the table and walked over to the target.

Some shots had veered too high or to left, but the vast majority had hit within the seven to ten ring.

'_Not bad, but I'm definitely out of practice._' I thought walking back from the firing line. '_Now I have to figure out squad compositions. We're close to two-hundred and fifty strong, far more than what I expected to have recruited over the past two months. I could divide squads into sets of ten, but then I'd need specialized squads for rangers and grenadiers. Rifleman and gunners will most likely be incorporated into every squad._'

I walked past the table and through the town, aiming for the main camping grounds for the Militia. The town itself had grown well. Word of Militia presence within the town had spread and many had moved in for the protection offered. Before the waves, the town possessed seven-hundred people. Now it has grown to upwards of a thousand.

Though it had grown greatly, it was nothing compared to the Militia. Much of the Militia infrastructure had remained as large tents but the scale of it had expanded at a rapid pace. With the some ninety-some more soldiers had been added to the ranks and twenty new buildings with most older ones having gone under renovation or replacements.

True structures were set for blacksmithing and storage, though they hadn't changed much either. The storage buildings were simply large tents atop stone walls while forges were furnaces and walls besides an open area holding the Bessemer Caudron and array of anvils and walls of wools. A second tent had been built with clay tablets for the fabricators to sit on.

At the center of it all remained the war-tent. The brains of the entire operation. Every strategy, battle plan, and soldier ID had been kept here.

I couldn't stop the sense of pride that ran through me at seeing it all coming together.

"Sir!" I heard called behind me. I stopped and turned around to see Ike running up to me with a pad and a sheet of paper. He saluted before continuing. "Division leads report they've found suitable candidates, sir."

"Good. Walk with me." I said as I resumed my walk to the war-tent. "How many do we have?"

"Marks Division reports eighteen new members. Cain reports twenty-two, and Hardy twelve." He said.

"Where are they now?"

"Waiting in the war-tent. The soldiers are standing near-by."

"Good. Escort them to the firing range. I'll be over there to begin the meat of their training once I'm done with the Division leads."

"Sir." Ike said before moving ahead to the tent. By the time I got there, he was already walking with the soon to be rifleman to the firing range. I walked into the tent and was met by the Other Division heads.

Each of them brandished their new weapons. Eran had his R1 rifle slung over his chest with pouches

They saluted as I walked in.

"At ease." I said. "How are we looking?"

"Ike just took our men over to the shooting range." Wilson said. "They've already been outfitted with ammo-harnesses and rifles. Most show promise in close to mid-range combat, but a few may be better suited for longer ranges."

"Good, with more variety in our engagement ranges we'll have better combat ability. How did you train them?" I asked, realizing that I gave them free-reign with how they chose to find their candidates.

"Taught them what to do, gave them a rifle and shotgun, and saw which ones were quick to learn." Wilson said.

"My tactic was similar, though it included the automatic weapon as well." Eran said.

"And Jax?" I asked. He chuckled to himself. "Jax, what did you do?"

"Fired a shot, and handed a rifle to whichever ones didn't piss themselves." He said.

I sighed. "Of course you did."

Jax only chuckled more.

"Well, what progress have we made?"

*Break

"Allow me to make this clear gentlemen!" I said to the gathered soldiers. They stood at attention in file in front of me. "You will follow these rules to the letter! If you do not, I will personally see them drilled into your skull until you do! Am I clear?"

The soldiers flinched under my tone. They had expected this from Jax, but not from me.

"Rule number one! Do not point your rifles at what you don't plan to kill. If you don't plan to kill it, then don't act like you will! Am I clear?"

"Sir!"

"Rule number two! If you pick up a rifle, check it's action. If it's meant to be loaded, make sure it is. If it's not meant to be loaded, make sure it isn't. The weapons are not perfect and misfires are a rare but deadly problem. It doesn't matter if you watched someone check the rifle and hand it to you. You! Will! Check it! Am I clear?"

"Sir!"

"And Rule number three! Respect your weapon! It is a machine and it will do what you tell it to do. But you will treat it as the machine of death that it has been built to be! If you do not treat your weapon well, it will bite you in the ass! Am I clear?"

"Sir!"

"Good. Now let's get to training." And like that, the next few hours became a blur of commands, rifle fire, and yelling. The only times I really remembered was explaining the different classes of soldiers.

"Riflemen, you are the backbone of The Militia." I explained to a group of soldiers holding R1 rifles. "You will specialize in mid to close-range combat. Each of you will be armed with your sword, Hemlock, 1911, and hefty sum of ammo for both. Your rifle runs dry, you use your pistol. Your pistol runs dry, use your sword."

I picked up a rifle and aimed at a target. I fired five shots before reloading the rifle and firing another few shots. "When I'm done with you, this'll be second nature."

"Rangers, you are the more specialized of the Militia." I said to another group of soldiers assembled with Shotguns. "If the Riflemen are the sword, you are the dagger! Unlike your fellow soldiers, you keep your specialty in close range. Unlike your counterparts, you have two types of ammo to pick from."

I picked up a shotgun and two magazines, one with slug rounds, the other with buckshot. "Buckshot and slug rounds. Buckshot is spread based and doesn't need a lot of aiming to hit a target. What it lacks in range it makes up for in destructive power. You shoot something with this, and will turn to red paste."

"Slug rounds are the second side of the same coin. Better range than buckshot but not as much raw damage. Its penetration is another story." I said loading the slug round, aiming a series of twelve steel plates I had set up on the range. I sent a single slug downrange and watched it blew throw each steel plate effortlessly.

'_Was sharpened titanium tips overkill...? What am I saying? I need it to be overkill._' I thought, looking at the fragments. "This will go through damn anything you point at. Stone walls, heavy armor, you name it."

"Gunners! Grenadiers!" I yelled to the last two groups. "Your jobs are simple. Rain Hell. Gunners, your weapon for the job is the Spitfire. You may have the smaller caliber, but you certainly have the highest rate of fire and mag-size. Each of your weapons carries eighty rounds of ammunition, along side a backpack full spares. You see a heavy group coming, it's your job to thin the numbers."

"Grenadiers! Like the Gunners, your job is thinning out the herd, but you have a second target. Heavy armor. If it's big and wrapped in metal, then it's just right for you. Your weapons are specialized for shredding armor and blowing through hoards."

I walked over to the table and picked up a blue flare. "This is a flare. You see blue smoke, you blow whatever by it straight to Hell. Clear?"

"Yessir!"

I grinned at the sight before me. It wouldn't be long until the Militia was comparable to the military of my world. "Damn right you do! Now lets see what kind of havoc you can reign down with them."


	18. The True Enemy

**Chapter 18, The True Enemy**

"You want a _what_?" I asked a pair of soldiers, a ranger and grenadier specifically. The wave was soon, less than ten hours away, and early in the morning. It was getting late and I was planning to find a cot to sleep in but a few soldiers had pulled me aside to ask something.

I had gone over the individual pieces of each rifle, training every soldier how to properly maintain their weapon. As a result, a few 'creative' individuals had come to me with suggestions and requests.

"Think about it, sir."

"You want a shotgun that fires _explosive bolts_? I… Applaud you coming up with designs as awesome as that but… Really?"

Truth be I already had a rather simple design for an explosive round. Hollow out the projectile of a larger than normal slug round, fill it with volatile powder and add a smaller, more volatile charge at the front that would go off upon impact but not so volatile that it went off by just dropping the round or firing the weapon.

But hearing it brought up by someone who wasn't me? It was a little unsettling.

'_Is this what people feel like when I bring up bad ideas?_'

"Yes sir." They both said.

"Just… Get to your barracks!" I said laughing. They saluted and left.

'_They're already shaping up into marines._' I thought.

I walked through the camp on my way to the war tent. I couldn't help but still feel proud of how far the Militia has come. Not a month, we were nothing short of rag-tag civilians with a month's worth of military training who were really just lucky that they hadn't taken worst casualties then they did. Now? We were closing in on the spot of the most advanced military in this world.

Coming up to the war tent, I opened the flap and inside was two of the division heads.

"Jax. Eran. How are we looking?" I said walking up to the table.

"Soldiers are doing maintenance on their weapons now." Jax said. "They'll be getting rest pretty soon."

"Good. Do the rifleman ing squad-1 know they'll be fighting directly under me tomorrow?"

"They do. Squads 2 and 3 know they'll be working on thinning out monsters appearing from the portals too."

Just then, Luna walked into the tent. "The rest of our party has gotten food and found a place to rest over in the new barracks-tents."

I nodded. "Thanks for the heads up."

Lune walked to the side of the tent and leaned against one of the poles holding up the cloth.

"Jax, head over to your men, get some rest, and make sure they aren't doing jousting matches with the brooms without me again."

"Aye sir." He saluted and walked out of the tent.

"Eran, anything new with you?"

"Men prepped and ready, plans laid out, and everyone knows what they're doing. Nothing to report."

I nodded. "Good. Head and get some rest too. It's an early flight tomorrow."

"What about you sir?"

"I'll head and get some rest soon. I just want to double-check the map. Make sure we didn't miss anything."

"Aye sir." He saluted and left the tent.

I leaned over the table and looked over the map. It was marked up with an insane amount of lines and symbols. Paths and troop movements, pieces depicting individual squads, precise movements and order responses to flairs from each division.

It was a truly precise and incredibly laid out plan.

'_And it's going to go to shit the moment we start fighting._' I thought. No plan survives first contact. That rule remained a constant, even in other worlds.

"You know," Luna said out of the blue, "your eyes haven't sparked in a while."

"Have they?" I asked, thinking over the past month. "I guess other than that event with the cactus, I haven't really had a lot to be angry at."

"I guess that's a good thing." She said, walking over to me. She put her hands on the sides of my face, pulling me away from the map and Emerald green met silvery grey.

She eyed the faceplate over my mouth. "I really do hate that mask."

"Really? This is one of my best works."

She looked at me disappointedly before I caught on.

I sighed and undid the bindings, setting the plate down on the table.

She smiled. "That's better." She held my head in her hands, running her fingers over the ends of the scar on my face while I let my hands come around her hips. The sadness in her eyes didn't go unnoticed.

"You know it wasn't your fault I got cut up, right?"

"I know... But it still feels like I could've done something."

I chuckled. "I think beating three soldiers within an inch of their lives was plenty."

She sighed but smiled again. "Ever since I confessed, we really haven't had a moment to just enjoy each other, have we?"

"No." I began to lean my head down a bit. "I suppose we haven't."

"I thought you only wanted to go so far until the waves were finished." Luna said but kept smiling.

"Wasn't this whole thing your idea?" I said. She laughed and I leaned my head down further as she brought hers higher. "Besides, a little fun couldn't hurt."

Before we could come closer, the tent flap opened.

"Sir, you have… a…" He stopped mid-sentence, realizing he had just walked in on a rather intimate moment. Luna and I both turned to see a rather flustered Ike standing near the entry.

"Can I help you, soldier?" I said sarcastically.

"Uhm-Yes Sir-no sir-there's a visitor-sir-"

"You seem to be tripping over your words there, Ike." I cut him off. "How about you step out for, say, five or ten minutes and get them sorted out before coming back in."

"Y-Yessir, but-"

"Ike." I dropped the subtlety. "Get out."

"Yes sir." He saluted before walking out and closing the tent flap.

"Sorry about that." I apologized.

"Just… Pretend it didn't happen." She said.

"That sounds like a splendid idea." I said, leaning back in.

I could feel her breath on my cheeks. It was warm, strangely so, yet comforting at the same time.

The tent flap opened again.

'_Goddammit._'

"Ike, we're in the middle of something here. Whatever it is, it can wait _five minutes_." I said, starting to get irritated.

"But sir, you have a visitor. She's-"

"Well tell _them_ to wait five minutes. It's not that hard."

He looked outside and back at us, conflicted on what he should do. He walked back out of the tent and closed the flap. I could vaguely hear yelling on the other side.

"Now," I started, "where were we-"

"...-you shouldn't just barge in-!" Ike protested as the tent flap was thrown open.

'_Seriously!?_'

"Okay-what in the Goddam-!"

Standing in the entryway was a small girl, no older than ten years old, in a purple dress with two long pigtails of purplish-blue hair. Normally, she would possess a more pale complexion, but at the moment she resembled a tomato more than anything.

It was Melty Melromarc, the second princess.

"Well… This is awkward."

Melty remained still, completely shocked by what she was seeing. "If you… Want… I can step out…" She squeaked out, gesturing to the doorway with shaky hands.

"Don't bother, mood's dead anyway." I grumbled, letting my arms fall back to my side. Luna stepped back, grumbling all the same. "What is it? I assume this isn't a meet and greet?"

She shook off her surprise and returned to her more professional, albeit still a little jittery, demeanor.

She cleared. "Yes. My name is Melty Q. Melromarc."

"Second daughter of Queen Mirelia and King Aultcray the XXXII, sister of Malty Melromarc, and apparent princess of the country. I am well aware of who you are." I said, still somewhat irritated.

"Good, you do know who I am." The princess commented. "I have a demand from Queen Merellia and myself, concerning you and King Aultcray."

"Let me guess. You want me to make up your pops and move along with combating the waves, right?"

"How did you-oh right." She said, holding her forehead. "The shadows did report that you have extensive foreknowledge of this world's events. But, that makes this easy. Now, if you could-"

"I'm gonna stop you right there." I said, "Not happening."

Melty tripped over her words. "But Sir Shield Hero, we can't waste time fighting each other! The waves of calamity are a far larger problem!"

"I am well aware." I sighed. "Now tell that to him."

She grumbled. "I would've expected you to be more understanding, especially with your knowledge. After all, you wouldn't be anywhere without the king's financial support."

'_Oh, don't give me that._'

"Okay kid, not even going into the fact that I haven't received jack from the King, if you knew what I know, you wouldn't even be bothering trying to get us to work together. Hell, you'd probably be more concerned with what comes after the wave tomorrow."

Melty looked at me surprised. "What comes after the wave?"

I looked at Ike and nodded. He stepped outside and closed the tent flap.

"You're sister, Malty, I'm sure you're aware she's something of a trouble maker?"

"Yes. It's the reason she's no longer next in line for queenship."

"Well, come after the wave, you'll end up coming after me again to try and talk me into meeting with the king to make up again. But, shit hits the fan, the guards with you will be Three Heroes Church fanatics working alongside your sister and the pope, and they'll try to kill you. Not after you get to me though because they want to make sure the blame falls on me. They'll fail but, with the help of a crystal ball, make it look like I kidnapped you and we'll go on this whole run around the country."

Melty stopped. "She'll… Try to kill me?"

I nodded. "Not just that, but you're old man will fall for it. He's been conspiring with the church against me as well, but isn't as deep into it as your sister. We'll be on the run for a while, so when you do try and find me, bring a spare set of clothes. Something that'll work with traveling."

"Is it… No, she's a troublemaker, but she wouldn't stoop to that!"

"You are far more optimistic about that half of your family then you should be." I said bluntly. "But, believe it or not, it will happen. Lucky for you, they'll still try to kill you in my vicinity so I'll be there to stop it. Otherwise, it'll be painfully obvious that something's not right, even to Aultcray. He may be working with them but he's little more than a puppet at this point."

"You… You can't be serious!" She protested. "Father would never go against mothers wishes like that!"

"Again with this?" I sighed. "Kid, he thinks what he's doing will truly be for the good of your country and his family. Even if it means going against the queen, he'll still do it."

"Look, I know it's not fun to hear," Luna said, walking up to Melty and kneeling in front of her, "But when it comes to this, Alpha knows what he's talking about."

Melty stared at Luna for a moment. "And may I ask you're relationship to the shield?"

"I'm his partner and mate." Luna said. "Look he may be… Eccentric… And chaotic… And forgetful… And not make any sense most of the time…"

"Really feeling the love there Luna." I commented.

She ignored it. "But, he really does care. He didn't, he wouldn't be going through all this trouble if he didn't."

She looked down but slowly nodded. "Very well. I will still talk to my father, but I will trust you on this."

She turned to walk out of the tent but stopped. "One more thing," she turned back, "when you built your… Militia. What was its purpose?"

"An immediate response force to protect the surrounding population centers." I said, "The King was contempt letting his soldiers run around and destroy whatever villages they came across if it meant clearing out large portions of the monsters in the process, even at the cost of civilian life. I was not."

"I see…" She said, "Thank you for telling me. I will… See you after the wave then…"

"I hope so."

Melty left the tent, closing the flap when she left.

"Well… That was one hell of a first impression." I yawned.

"You don't say." Luna said sarcastically.

"Let's just… Go and get some rest."

We left the tent and went down to where the rest of our party was. The section they had decided to stay in was a second barracks area, built to accommodate all the new soldiers plus extra. Because of that there weren't too many people around.

They had all chosen cots along the same wall and planted their armor plates in footlockers at the base of the bed.

"Hey ya'll." I said, waking into the tent.

"Master!" Filo said running up to me and grabbing my leg, still in her armor. "Hi."

"Hey Filo." I said, letting her run back and jump onto her own cot.

"How'd it go?" Phobos asked.

"Good." I said, undoing the latches on my armor. "Funny enough, Melty actually showed up not too long after I had finished up with the division heads. Had the whole 'make up with the king' request."

"What'd you tell her?"

"Told she was gonna try to get murdered tomorrow and should probably pack some gear with her when she comes to see me."

My party paused and stared at me.

"... Subtly as ever I see..."

"Yep." I yawned again.

'_Tomorrow is gonna suck._' I thought. Between getting knocked around by a giant flying worm with teeth, followed by a lady with a pair of fans, followed living like a fugitive _again_, followed by God knows whatever else, I was not looking forward to it.

I had gone over the coming months with my party and how Malty would attempt an assassination on her sister after the wave. If they hadn't hated Malty before, they certainly had after learning her intentions for Melty.

Orders for the Militia during our time on the run were simple. Train the remaining soldiers and prepare for fighting the wave in Siltvelt while strengthening Riyute's defenses.

At least, that was the official order.

Rens warning about the King performing a preemptive strike on Riyute for fear of a rising rebellion was not lost on me, and it was impossible to hide our rapidly growing strength at this point. While he may not have tried something while we were smaller, I wasn't as certain now. And after this wave, our ability for combat would have a clear advantage over Melromarc's forces.

But we were prepared for it.

Fox-holes, trench warfare, and anti-artillery tactics were all taught or to be taught to the soldiers. I had wished to go into more detail with each, especially trench warfare, as it made artillery far less effective on fortified positions, but what they know at the moment would suffice. It would have to be something they completed following the wave.

'_Melromarc artillery units almost destroyed this village once. Should they attack, we'll need to engage first and with the village outside of their range._'

Thoughts for later. Right now, what I needed was some sleep.

"Carter!" I heard from outside the tent. I turned to see Ren walking in with his party right outside.

"Ren? The hell are you doing here?" I asked walking over.

"Looking for a place crash tonight. Hope you don't mind if my party spends it here."

"Not a problem. Cots right across from us are empty." I said gesturing to the other side of the tent. Ren nodded and motioned for his party to enter. They did and began finding their places.

"So this is the Militia." Ren said. He had seen it before when it was still small, but it was nowhere near where it is now. Truthfully, I have little doubt it would soon become the most powerful military in this world. "It's grown a lot."

"Funny what advanced tech will do." I said with some humor. "Your party ready for the wave?"

"Ready as we'll be. No telling what we'll encounter."

I was about to retort but didn't, realizing that I technically didn't know either. "Yeah. It feels like with every day more of what I know becomes wrong or unlikely."

"Has leviathan said anything to you about the wave?"

"We've talked but haven't said anything about tomorrow. It was mainly getting a second word about what tactics would be most effective for the riflemen. If he does see or pick up something out of the ordinary though, he'll tell me."

Ren nodded before walking over to an empty cot and propping his sword next to it. He unlatched the metal plating on his chest and shoulder and laid it down on the footlocker.

"Anything important I should know beforehand?" He asked.

"You remember the whole thing with Glass and Melty?"

"Yep."

"Then you're good." I said laying down. "Now get some sleep."

'_Lord knows we'll need it._'

* * *

"Group up!" I yelled to the soldiers behind me, summoning my new Hardlight Shield as a large group of lizardmen ran at us. They were large, scaly creatures and donned rusted armor and weapons.

Like my Light Shield, my Hardlight Shield was diamond-shaped but was far larger, with a thin cross running between the middle of each edge where the pieces fit together. I pushed magic into the shield and the pieces expanded from the shield, drawing light blue energy between the corners in front of me.

I slammed the shield on the ground, locking it in place as the sides expanded outward even more, blocking off the whole street we were in.

The small group of riflemen, along with Luna, ran up to the wall and aimed at the approaching group through the shield. Rifle fire went off beside me and I watched as the bullets passed unhindered through the shield. The smaller lizardmen were cut down by the hail of bullets. Though the stronger monsters kept running their movements slowed to a crawl as they came closer.

"Bayonet charge!" I ordered. The troops rushed out from behind the shield and thrust their bayonets into monsters. The blades pierced through the hide and deep into the joints and organs of the beast. Their limbs went limp and their bodies fell to the ground.

I walked over to the men. "Good charge but bad shooting!" I yelled at them. "Organ damage won't kill the big ones fast enough! Aim for the head. Take out the brain, and it's an immediate kill."

"Sir!" They answered. A second squad of Militia soldiers came around a block of buildings. Their armor was scuffed up but there didn't appear to be any major injuries.

"General Carter! Cain division squads have complete evacuation and Marks Hardy Division squads report all green. This town is clear, sir."

I nodded. "Thank you, soldier. Now, everyone, get ready to move to the next village!" I grabbed my flare gun and pointed it into the sky. The flair whistled while it flew and a green smoke trail followed the bright spark.

I holstered the flare gun and began directing my men but was cut off by two more flares flying into the sky, both green.

'_That's the last two. This went a lot faster than originally._' I thought to myself. What should've taken three hours had been cut down to just over one.

"New plan!" I called out to my men. "Return to Riyute and reinforce Cain division. My party is going to engage the wave boss! Clear?"

"Sir!" The soldiers said. They quickly began grouping together, with soldiers who weren't present being filled in as they came.

Luna walked up to me, sheathing her phase-blade on her back next to her rifle. She was a fast learner and by the time the wave came, I felt comfortable with her fighting with it.

"You ready?' I asked. She nodded and transformed. I mounted up and we began running towards the wave boss.

The boss was strange to say the least. It was a flying pirate ship with a Kraken stretching out from its underside. As we approached the underside of the ship, I could see the rest of my party approaching from my right side. We grouped up and continued our run towards the ship.

As we grew closer, we noticed bolts of light flying up and impacting the side of the vessel.

'_Found Itsuki._' I thought as we approached him and his party members.

"Itsuki! Why the hell are you down here?" I yelled. He looked at me with surprise.

"Carter? I thought you'd be evacuating the villagers."

"See the green flares? Those were my men reporting successful evacuations. Now what are you doing down here?" I asked again.

"Firing at the ship. We need to damage it to bring the boss out!"

"No. What we do is entirely different but we have to be on the ship to do it." I said. I turned back and looked at the rest of my party. "Filo, you think you can carry all of us?"

"Maybe you, Luna, and Raphtalia but Phobos and Deimos are too heavy." She said.

"Alright, Luna, Raphtalia, you two come up with me. Phobos, Deimos, follow the path of the ship but stay ahead. The moment you see Filo jump off with us, run. That's where Glass will be going after us. Clear?"

"Aye Alpha." They said.

"Glass?" Itsuki asked.

"Angry lady with a pair of fans. You'll see when we get there." I said hopping onto a transformed Filo while Luna and Raphtalia mounted up behind me. She crouched down, ready to jump towards the ship.

"You ready?" I asked.

"Yes sir!" She yelled.

"Good. Now, while you're flying through-holy shit!" I yelled as Filo began flying away before I was ready. I managed to get my grip back though.

"Airstrike shield!" I called out. As soon as we began to fall, I summoned the shield below us, giving Filo a second platform to jump from. We were almost at the top of the ship when we began to fall again and summoned my second shield.

Filo jumped from the new platform and we rocketed past the ship. As we looked down, we were given a clear view of its deck. Near the middle of the deck was Motoyasu fighting off the tentacles of the Kraken. Near its bow was Ren fighting the skeletal captain.

"Raph, light shot!" I called.

"Right!" She yelled. She brought her hand up and fired a flare into the sky. It was bright and illuminated everything near the ship. The shadows of the skeleton captain and tentacle shivered but didn't disappear.

"Now, hit the shadows!"

Luna and Raphtalia acted quickly, jumping from Filo and falling down to the deck. They plunged their swords into the shadows through the deck. They shivered and rushed away, combining at the center of the ship.

'_Like clockwork._' I thought.

I landed on the deck between Ren and Motoyasu with Itsuki following right behind us. The pair were recovering from the unexpected flare and didn't see me or my party land on the deck. When they had finished rubbing out their eyes, they were surprised to see me standing right next to them.

"Ladies. Gentlemen." I said looking at the two heroes and their parties. I spared a glare at Malty. "Bitch."

"I was wondering when you'd get here." Ren said walking up to my side, brandishing his plasma sword. I raised an eyebrow.

"Why aren't you using your sentinel series?" I asked.

"Cause you weren't kidding when you said they suck up magic." He said.

"Fair enough." I said, focusing again on the shadow. It began pulsing and lifting itself from the deck, becoming less of a shadow and more of an oily portal.

"Alright. Ready up! Here comes the boss!" I yelled. Out of the black portal shot a white, eel-like creature. Its body was slender and pointed at the tail. Its head was made from heavy bone plates along its face and jaw, each pointed at the front and back. Its wide-mouth was decorated with long white teeth.

It screeched at us and a purple health bar appeared at the top of my vision. Above it was the name 'Soul Eater'.

"Ren!" I called him, summoning my Grapple Shield. "Help me strap that thing down!"

He nodded and brought out his own grapple sword. We charged forward and flanked the Soul Eater. We launched our grapples and they pierced into the hide, tethering us to the boss. The creature screeched and tried to pull away from us but we held solid.

"You waiting for an invitation!? Hit the damn thing!" I yelled. My party was quick to respond. The girls jumped in quick, flying past the Soul Eater and leaving deep slashes and burns in its sides. The armored talons and energized blades cutting through the thick hide like butter.

The other heroes followed suit, putting in their own damage.

"Go Motoyasu!" One of his party members shouted. She cloth around her chest and waist, exposing her midriff and wielding a spear.

"Shut up and fight you damn cheerleaders!" I yelled at her. She scoffed but didn't attack. I turned back to the more pressing issue, that being the giant eel that was quite pissed about its current position.

With another pull, it yanked Ren and I forward, our feet sliding on the deck. We looked at each other and nodded. With a heave of our own, we began pulling it back away from the bow of the ship and closer to the deck.

"Thunder arrow!" I heard called behind me. I glanced behind me to see Itsuki readying an attack on the chained Soul Eater. The arrow flew straight and exploded against the Soul Eater.

The explosion rocketed the beast and Ren and my lines snapped, sending us stumbling backward. The Soul Eater flew around the ship, looking for a different angle to attack from. Glancing at the Soul Eaters' health, I noticed we had managed to take a fifth of its health away.

"That was good, but be more cautious about your AOE attacks! Now get ready for the next damage phase!" I called out.

"Why would we take orders from you?" I heard Malty say behind me. I rolled my eyes and looked back at her.

"Are you ever helpful?" I genuinely asked.

"Look out!" Luna called. I only just turned around to see the Soul Eater charging at me.

"Shit!" I yelled. I brought my hands up and only just caught the Soul Eaters jaws. I slid back on the deck, trying to hold back its teeth. Its breath smelled like death.

"Gauss Blade!" Ren yelled. The side of the Soul Eater erupted in blue flames and flew sideways, throwing me onto my back. Burnt onto the Soul Eaters side was deep, ash black cut. Blue flames still danced along the wound.

Ren rushed to my side, holding a two-handed greatsword. Its backing and handle were silvery and wide. It possessed no clear guard, instead the blade coming down and hollowing over the handle, creating a guard of its own, before reconnecting with the base of the hilt. The blade side itself was hollow at the edge, curving inward with a steady flow of energy flowing up the blade with lightning cackling across the metal.

"You alright?" He asked, holding his hand out.

"Never better." I said, taking the hand. I glanced at his sword and noticed how the tip was digging into the deck without the second hand to support it. "Thanks for the save."

"No problem." He said, summoning his Plasma Sword, his arm noticeably lifting up without the weight. Glancing at the health, I could see another fifth of the creature's life had been taken down, with a slow drop from the residual flames.

"That thing hits hard." I said.

"My manas at half though, and that wasn't even a charged slash."

"That much of a toll on you?" I questioned. "Guess you didn't prioritize mana when you did your class-up huh?"

"Can we focus on the boss please?" Itsuki asked, walking up to us and readying his bow. Sure enough, the Soul Eater had put out the fire on its side and was now giving us the equivalent of a death glare.

"Gladly." Ren said.

"Ren, you and I lock it down." I said out. "Itsuki, Luna, you and aim for its eyes. Try and blind it. The rest of you, attack while it's immobile."

"Got it Alpha." Luna said, walking up and readying her rifle. Itsuki and Motoyasu glanced at the weapon before going wide-eyed at the sight.

"When did-?"

"Fight now. Talk later." I said.

Everyone readied their weapons to attack.

"Now!" I yelled, and we shot forward. Ren and I repeated the process, summoning our grapple Shield and aiming for the Soul Eater. Instead of charging at us, the Soul Eater flew backward, causing our grapples to miss. It ducked to the right under the ship before appearing near Ren.

"Air strike shield!" I called. Before the Soul Eater could hit Ren, it bashed against the ethereal shield, giving Ren an opening to strike. He took it, putting a new gash across its face. Luna and Itsuki followed up and shot at the other side of its face. The combination of bullet and arrow fire was enough to take out one of its eyes.

"Left sides blind, Filo, get it on the ground!"

"On it!" She bound forward and clawed and slashed at the Soul Eaters face, latching onto it and ripping away at the bone plating. She twisted her body and threw the Soul Eater near the deck. I summoned my Bio-Plant Shield and created a handful of corpse vine seeds. I threw them at the deck and sprouted from the ground, latching onto the white Eel.

"Our turn." I said to Ren. I summoned my Twin Sentinel Shields and let the energy blades spark to life while he charged his plasma sword. We charged at the Soul Eater and planted our blades into its hide, hacking and slashing at the downed creature. The smell of burning flesh filled the air as the creature's skin was turned ash. We cut into the hide, trying to cause as much damage as possible.

'_Two fifths left._' I noted.

The Soul Eater thrashed against the vines violently. As its efforts grew, the vines began to snap and Soul Eater broke free. Ren and I were pushed back and readying ourselves.

What it did next we didn't expect.

Instead of backing away, the Soul Eater began to spin around itself, becoming a white tornado.

"Behind me!" I yelled, bringing up my shield.

In one motion, the creature undid itself, letting its tail fly at me with breakneck speed. It struck against my shield and I flew back, my feet lifting off the deck. I hit the railing and with a thud and landed on the deck.

"That hurt." I groaned pulling myself up with the rail. I had just shaken away the dizziness when the Soul Eater came barreling at me again.

I brought my shield up to block but it wouldn't matter. It hit against my shield once more and I broke through the railing, falling off the ship.

"Carter!" I heard Luna shout from the ship.

I pulled up my shield tree, looking for anything that could save me. '_Gotta have something-gotta have something-gotta have-! Oh right._'

* * *

"Carter!" I yelled.

He had been thrown off the ship and now the Soul Eater was floating above the center of the ship, ready for whoever else came.

"Filo! Go and-" Before I could continue, a flash of light sparked above the Soul Eater and a ring of pulsing energy formed above.

… That Carter fell out of, landing on top of the Soul Eater.

The monster and the hero looked at each other for a moment, neither really knowing how to react.

"So how are you?" He asked.

The Soul Eater went into a mad spiral, thrashing around trying to throw the Shield Hero off. Yet, somehow, Carter managed to keep in the Boss head, hollering as he did.

"What in the actual…" I muttered.

* * *

"Yeehaw-you-sonuvabitch! You-ain't-knocking-me-off-that-easy!" I yelled.

I don't know how, but, through some miracle, I managed to stay on the worm, despite being thrown around like a ragdoll on a rope.

"I'm Goddamn Sandy Cheeks!"

"What are you doing!?" Ren yelled from the deck. "Kill it already!"

"I'm getting there!" I yelled back. "You think holding onto this thing is easy!?"

Slowly, I managed to claw my way up to the head of the beast. As I did, it went from trying to shake me off to whipping around and biting at me.

I was right above the monster's head and took my shielded arm and shoved it into the mouth of the monster. I grinned as a light blue glow began to emit from the mouth of the creature.

The monster's movements became even more sporadic, waving its head from side to side as a low hum began to appear. Lightning began to spark from the monster's mouth, jumping up my arm and over its teeth.

"Eat plasma!"

I released the trigger on the Gauss Shield I had summoned inside the monster's mouth. Hardened plasma ripped through the beast, turning everything past its neck into white and red ribbons around a beam of pale blue light. The round continued through into the ship, blasting through the hull and sending wood splinters out with a cloud of smoke.

The beast head slammed into the deck and I let go, rolling across the wooden ship, my Gauss shield indenting itself into the wood.

I groaned, picking myself up from the deck while my shield returned to its default form.

'_Note to self; don't rodeo a Soul Eater if you plan to kill it._'

"What the hell was that!?" Itsuki yelled, still eyeing my shield. I looked up at him with a grin under my mask. Most everyone was silent, not even my own party not expecting that level of destruction. Even Malty couldn't find anything to say. The only one who didn't seem as fazed was Ren.

"I told you the Shield was the best fit for me." I said with a laugh.

My smile dropped as soon as the sky began to grow erratic and the swirling green portals began to shift and rip apart. I ran towards the middle of the warship and summoned my Hardlight Shield, filling it with magic and creating an energy barrier.

"Get behind me, we got something big coming!" I yelled. Ren, Itsuki, and all our parties didn't hesitate. Motoyasu, though hesitant, followed after them, his party following his lead.

Looking up, I could see the second Soul Eater descending from the swirling portals. "Heads up, second Soul Eater inbound!"

As it grew closer, I could make out more details on its hide. Red and black marks covered its white hide. It didn't move as it came down, remaining motionless as it fell to the ship.

It impacted against the wood and laid there, unmoving.

I blinked a few times, trying to discern what I was seeing. "What the hell?" I thought out loud. I looked at Ren and nodded, not dropping my Hardlight shield. We walked towards the Soul Eater slowly, never taking our eyes off it.

To say its body was covered in wounds was an understatement. To say what was left of it would be more appropriate. Bite marks made up the majority of the wounds along its hide while areas where the teeth went through tore away entire sections of the body.

I kicked it.

Nothing.

"That's not supposed to happen." I said worriedly.

No sooner did we discern it was dead that we heard footsteps. They were light and barely audible, but certainly there. We backed up and readied for a one-sided fight. Most everyone was widely confused by our reaction but readied their weapons regardless.

The steps stopped right at the door to the cabin of the ship.

'_Why is she just standing back there?_'

"Glass? That you back there?" I called out. Something wasn't adding up.

Slowly she walked out, resting her weight on the door frame. She was a slender lady with straight black hair and pale face. She wore a purple Kimono dress that accented her frame. Truthfully, she was quite beautiful.

At least she would've been.

Deep cuts and blood covered her body. Much of her dress was ripped along the arms and torso. A thick stream of blood covered half her face. She was shaking, barely holding herself up.

"Oh shit." I said.

I dropped my Hardlight Shield and ran over to her. She would've tried to kill us, but we would still need her later. I put my hands on her shoulders and helped lay her down. "Easy there Glass. You're in pretty bad shape."

"What happened to her?" Ren asked walking up to her, just as surprised as I was.

"Don't know. Probably whatever did the Soul Eater in." I said.

"Who is that?" Itsuki asked, shaking at the sight of so much blood.

"Glass." I responded. "She's one of the vassal heroes from the second world. Fan hero specifically."

"What nonsense are you spewing Shield Hero?" Malty yelled while walking up to us.

"Call it what you will but that is who she is," I said applying first aid with what I had on me. "And unless you want me to throw you off this damn tub that I suggest you shut up and let me work."

She backed away and scowled at me but didn't say anything.

"Raph, you got anymore medical on you?" I asked. We patched up Glass best we could but she was still in bad shape. Most of the damage was lacerations, but there was even more under the skin. Broken bones and dislocations seemed to be everywhere we looked.

Raph helped me wrap a tourniquet around her arms and bandages around, hoping to stunt the bleeding and keep the bones in her arms from piercing her skin. We had applied whatever healing cream on us to her chest and back. Though it did repair any damage across her torso, there just wasn't enough to heal to her whole body.

We finished patching up her wounds best we could. It wasn't pretty, but it would work.

"Well? What now?" Ren asked, still worried by the sight of what was happening. "The Soul Eaters are dead and monsters have stopped coming through the portal, but the wave hasn't ended."

"I don't know." I said.

"You don't know? You don't know!?" Ren yelled. "You practically yelled about how you knew what would happen! What do you mean you don't know!?"

"It means I don't know." I said turning around. "This," I said pointing at Glass, "never happened. She was supposed to show up and kick our asses, not be half dead! Most of the stuff that has happened wasn't supposed! Hell, half my damn party wasn't even supposed to exist!"

"Then what changed!?"

"I don't kn-!"

A boom sounded from above. Like red lightning, the portals were slashed into disarray, leaving behind a wave of green and purple particles.

A feeling of dread washed over us as the portals dissipated. I followed the feeling and watched a ball of fire fall from the slash. It raced towards the ground as we watched in amazement. It impacted the land with a burst of light. Slowly, the clouds parted ways from where the object hit, revealing the red sky behind them.

"Cover your ears!" I yelled, putting my hands over the sides of my mask. The rest of my party followed my lead. The other heroes recognized what was coming, but their parties didn't.

As soon as we covered our ears, a deafening boom hit us, rocking the ship and blowing away loose chunks of the hull.

I stumbled towards the railing of the ship, my ears still ringing, and looked towards the impact. The feeling only worsened as possibilities came to mind.

The parties behind me came to their senses and checked on each other. I stayed focused on the impact.

'_No…_' Leviathan spoke.

'_What is it Leviathan...?_ _Is that…?_'

'_It's… One of my kind._'

I went wide-eyed. Leviathan had been secretive about his being. He would talk but never give much to it. What he had told me didn't bode well. I slowly turned towards Ren.

"Do you...?" I asked. He shared the same feeling of dread as me.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Drakos feels it too."

We stayed silent, thinking about what to do. The odds quickly became apparent they were not in our favor. I backed away from the railing, pacing in circles trying to think of what to do.

"Carter? Ren?" Itsuki asked, his left hand begging to shake. "What was that?"

"Something far worse than the waves." Ren said, not looking back from the sight of impact.

"Alpha." Luna said, slowly walking up to me. "Is that…?"

I nodded. "Yeah. It's one of Leviathans' kind."

We stayed there, looking out and try to think of what to do.

'_That thing… Must be the reason Glass was in such bad shape. If it took her out… Damn._'

"Alright. New plan." I said grabbing my flare gun along with a red and green flare. '_Green for completion, red for mission-critical. No way they missed that impact. They should figure out to group up under the flares._'

I aimed the flare gun towards the sky and fired the green flare, before reloading and firing the red flare. I turned back to the rest of my party. "Raph, Filo, prep glass for transport. Get her off the ship and take her Riyute for medical treatment. Jump from the ship and glide over there, it'll be faster than running."

"Yes sir." They responded. Raphtalia went to work securing Glass' bandages before lifting her up to put on Filo's back. With her prepped, Raph hopped onto Filo's back, holding Glass down so she didn't fall.

"Raph, one more thing." I said getting her attention. "On your way, alert the division leads. Tell them to bring every gun they have to head for that crater. We'll need their firepower in dealing with that beast." She nodded and led Filo off the ship, making a B-line straight for Ryute.

"The rest of you are with me," I said summoning my Teleporter Shield. "We teleport back to the surface and regroup with Phobos and Deimos. From there, we head for that crater, and kill that warp beast."

"But Carter-" Ren started. I cut him off with a small, blue potion of mana. He took it, realizing what it was.

"We'll need you for this too. Recover your magic and get ready for a hell of a fight."

"I'm sorry. What?" I heard. I turned to see a confused Itsuki and Motoyasu. "What do you mean warp beast? Is that like the waves boss or some DLC enemy?"

"Nope. Worse. More so than the waves." I said walking towards the edge. "Get ready to head out. I'll explain on the way over but… Be ready. I'll keep my line connected so the rest of you can use it too."

I held out my hand and opened a portal. Through it, I could see the trees of the forest below us.

'_I really hope this plan works._'


	19. Battle With a New Foe

**Chapter 19, Battle with a New Foe**

**WE BACK BITCHES!**

**Admit it, you thought this story was dead. You thought I would begin rewriting it and then never post another chapter. Well... I honestly don't blame you for that. That was a long time between chapters and I do apologize for that.**

**Between the virus, and online learning, and the release of Doom New Horizons and Animal Crossing Eternal, I either didn't have to time or the energy/desire to write.**

**BUT WE BACK! Sorry for the long wait, I wanted this chapter to be good with everything that'll be happening. Surprisingly, it wasn't the fight that was hard, it was what came after that I was having the most trouble with.**

**God bless, and enjoy the newest chapter to W.P.**

"What do you have for me?" I said to Leviathan in the mindscape.

"Little, counting what we know." He replied. "It's small, a juvenile at most. Only about as large as two carriages and possess phasing abilities. Other physical attributes are unknown."

"Does Ren know?"

"Dracos has already informed him."

"And Itsuki and Motoyasu's beast?"

"Speaking with me but quite to them. They have not revealed themselves yet."

"Good, we'll need to keep it that way for now. If you learn anything, tell me."

"Will do." He said.

I opened my eyes and was back in reality. I and the other heroes were riding the wolves to the crater. We had left most of our parties behind in favor of rapid movement. Ren was on Deimos while Itsuki and Motoyasu were on Phobos. To his credit, Phobos was quite tempered with Motoyasu on him, unlike Deimos who had looked ready to bite the Spear Heroes' arm off.

As we approached the crater, I turned back to them.

"We're approaching the crater. Target ID: Shifter. Remember. This is an enemy we haven't faced before. It'll be fast and appear where you're not looking. Everyone ready?"

"Good here." Ren said.

"All set." Itsuki followed.

Motoyasu didn't respond and I didn't bother asking again.

"Drop us here." I said to the wolves. They stopped and let us dismount. They transformed into Demi-humans before they approached us.

"You three, go to the Militia and guide them here. Have them set up on the ridge line over there. Have them open up once we're clear of the crater."

"Yes sir." They responded. I turned back to the other heroes but Luna got my attention.

"Alpha." She said and I turned back. She grabbed the back of my mask and undid the latches before pulling it down. She put her arms around my neck and kissed me on the lips and I returned the affection.

"Be safe." She said handing me the mask.

"Will do." I said before putting my mask back on. I watched as the wolves transformed and ran off. I turned back to the other heroes.

Who were all giving me weird looks. Including Ren.

"What?" I asked.

"You… And her…" Itsuki said, trying to figure out what just happened. "Huh?"

"What can I say?" I asked walking past them, putting my mask on. "Demi-humans got a thing for me."

The other heroes shrugged and followed me. As we approached the edge, we looked into the crater. It was deep, with much of the ground still steaming from the impact. Rising from the center of the crater was a pillar of smoke.

We looked at each other and nodded. We jumped into the crater and slid down the side, kicking up hot dust and glass behind us. It was quiet when we reached the bottom.

"Move up." I said. I kept my shield up and faced the pillar of smoke. We moved slowly, watching around us to make sure we weren't ambushed.

Even as we got closer, we still couldn't see through the smoke.

"Hold." I said, raising a closed fist in the air.

The others stopped but I continued forward. As I grew closer, my vision began to glitch. Spots would become grey static or shift out of frame before returning back to normal. With a wave of my hand, I sent a gust of air that carried away the smoke.

Within the smoke was a small, round pit. It was a couple of feet deep and clearly not formed by the impact.

'_Damn._' I thought. '_You getting anything Leviathan?_'

'Vaguely... Wait.'

'_What? What are you feeling?_' I turned back to the heroes. Ren was looking around the crater with worry and Itsuki and Motoyasu both seemed uneased.

'Duck!' I did so without hesitation. I could feel the wind above my head shift and see the other heroes face my direction.

'Roll!' I rolled forward, another gust of air following me but this time accompanied by the sound of shattering stone. Not wanting to wait for a follow-up, I turned around and summoned an Airstrike shield, creating an ethereal barrier between me and whatever it was attacking me.

The sound of metal clashing with the construct rang throughout the crater. I could only catch a glimpse of a shadow before a ring of red light flashed through the smoke.

A second red flash came from above us.

"Second Shield!" I called, summoning a second airstrike directly above Ren. A blur of black skin, spikes, and teeth impacted the shield, wildly striking against it in an attempt to get the Sword Hero. The most I could make out was a long snout, four legs, and a tail before it jumped away again.

Light flashed behind me and I turned around with my shield raised. The creature slammed against my shield and I slid back against the ground. I pushed back but slipped forward as the weight pushing against me suddenly disappeared. A second flash behind me and I had barely managed to twist my body to put my shield up before I was knocked into the ground.

With another flash, it had left me, and the sound of metal clashing rang out near me. Slowly I got up, stumbling for a moment before catching myself. When I looked up, I saw the beast phasing out of reality before appearing somewhere else. The other heroes weren't holding up.

Just as fast as it appeared, it would disappear, leaving another strike one of the heroes, Almost as if it was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It didn't need to focus its attention on a single hero or pick them off one by one. It was handling all three of them simultaneously.

As I watched the fight, however, I noticed something about the beast's teleporting. Something that looked strange about it.

'_There._' I thought, noticing it. Right as the beast teleported, it flattened into a red distortion that always remained just a little larger than the part of the body entering it.

"It's using portals to jump around." I thought out loud. '_Leviathan, we got anything that can limit its range?_'

'Give me a moment.' He said.

Not wanting to leave the heroes on their own, I charged near Itsuki. Right as a flash went off above him, I threw an armored fist forward without any real target. My gamble was paid off with the sound of bones shattering.

The creature's snout snapped like a twig, it's teeth being knocked out while it's head didn't even have a chance to whip back. With a second punch, I shattered its ribs inward, knocking the beast away from Itsuki. I flopped onto the ground in a heap of flesh but no blood came from it.

"... That's it?" Ren asked. "Little underwhelming for all it was doing."

'Of course that's not it.' Leviathan said. Ren seemed to grimace as well. 'You only made it harder to kill.'

Before I could talk, the beast began to pick itself up from the ground. The areas that had been shattered only seconds ago had completely reformed, now even bulkier than before. Armor plates covered its belly and chest but were still clear from it's back.

"It's evolving." Itsuki said in disbelief.

'Rapid evolution. Its cells exist as more of a colony than a single being.' Leviathan said. 'This is bad. The longer you drag out this fight, the less your chances of winning will be.'

'_Damn. If we want to get it, we'll need to deal with its teleporting. You find something for me?_'

'Latchings from you Prisma shield, along with the energy shield should keep warp beast from utilizing its portals. The energy shield will act like a solid wall jammer. Anything behind it and the beast can't teleport to it. While it's locked down, find it's core and destroy it.'

'_Latchings?_'

'Yes. Tendril like constructs. How could you forget? You created… No, that's not right. That was… My apologies. A fragment of my memory came back and blurred. I've sorted it out now.'

'_No problem. Guess familiar situations bring back old memories for you too._' I thought back.

'Indeed.'

"On me, now!" I yelled, summoning my Prisma Shield. The other heroes grouped around me, not sure what I was doing but having no other option. "Find its core! We take that out, and it's an instant kill."

The warp beast growled at us and charged. Before it opened a second portal, I played my card.

"Shield Latchings!" I called. With a flash of blue light, three tendrils of light shot out of my shield before homing in on the beast.

The latchings did their job and trapped the beast. It tried to summon its portals but each attempt was cut off when the portals got too close. It thrashed around, putting a strain on the tendrils and myself. The other heroes gaped at the ability, but we didn't have time for it.

"Hit it!" I said with a strained voice. The other heroes charged out, readying their weapons.

Altogether, they unleashed their strongest attacks. Bright golden streaks in the shape of spear, sword, or arrow trailed across the battleground and exploded against the beast.

What I hadn't anticipated was the whiplash. As the attacks hit, the latchings reached their limit and snapped. They broke apart in a flash of blue that ran across its length back to like fire set to a trail of gunpowder. It impacted the shield with a second burst of energy. While the other heroes were out of reach, I was caught in the middle of the burst.

The pulse left me disoriented, my vision having the same flashes of static as before. I fell onto my knees, overwhelmed by the worst headache I've ever experienced.

"Carter!" Ren shouted. I looked up and barely made out a black mass running at me.

'Shit!' I brought my shield up and braced myself for the hit.

It never came.

I opened my eyes and there, standing in front of me, was Motoyasu, struggling to hold back the warp beast, but holding nonetheless. He pushed against the beast and bashed it with blunt weight at the bottom of his spear. He brought his spear back and thrust the blade forward, jamming it between two of the plates on the stomach.

"Blast spear!" He yelled. A cloud of white smoke and lightning curled around the head of the spear. It went off with a bang, sending a shockwave back at us and the beast a few meters.

It merely looked up at Motoyasu and growled, almost unphased by the attack.

"You gotta be kidding me." Motoyasu mumbled.

'_We can't stay like this. We're too spread out and running out of options._' I thought. '_Gauss Shield… It has the firepower but it's too slow. I'll never be able to track it well enough to hit it._'

I dropped the shield in place for my Bio-Plant Shield. "New plan! You three distract it! I got something in the works."

"You better make it quick!" Ren called back, summoning his default sword. He plunged it into the ground as twelve other swords appeared around him. They pulled themselves out of the ground before launching at the beast.

'_We just got to hold it off for a bit longer, then we can really put some hurt on it._' I thought. '_When will reinforcements get here!?_'

I pooled magic into my shield and summoned a multitude of Corpse Vine seeds. I threw them all around where we were fighting, watching the soil twist while the seeds took root but didn't sprout.

'_Good. Now I just have to lure it over here._' I thought while the others engaged in the warp beast.

Ren had gone to stab the warp beast but it simply twisted its body, avoiding the sword entirely. Its tail whipped back and swatted him away. Motoyasu tried to take advantage of its extended state but it spun across the ground and swiped his legs out from under him. Before Motoyasu had even hit the ground, the beast had grabbed Motoyasu's airborne legs and threw him off to the side.

Its body twisted itself over one of Itsuki's arrows. Its arms stretched and its claws dug into the ground, ripping up rocks the size of small boulders. Its body twisted in the center without either section moving and in one fluent motion and unwound itself, hurled the stones at Itsuki at breakneck speeds.

Ren had jumped into the air behind it, wielding his Gauss sword. He brought it down on the beast but in a display of biological superiority, its body broke into two pieces, letting the sword pass before reattaching itself right as the blade passed through.

In an attempt to counter, Ren jumped back and brought his sword up and to send a hot slash of plasma. The beast rolled left from Ren and sent a cloud of dirt right as Ren sent the attack. With a knock from the beast tail, Ren's slash missed the beast and instead went in Itsuki's direction, who barely managed to dodge the attack.

'We're getting hammered here.' I grimaced. It hadn't been five minutes and we were already pushing what we could take down.

With a few quick breaths, I summoned my Hardlight Shield and charged the beast. It wasn't expecting me to suddenly join the fight and it teleported away from me before appearing behind me. I planted my foot twisted my body, bashing my shield across the beast's face.

Its head snapped back but didn't break. I followed up with a second, and then a third. With each hit, it moved less, becoming like a living stone.

When the fifth hit struck, its face barely budged.

It opened its maw and bit down on my arm. I cried as its jaw clamped shut and started twisting, trying to rip my arm off.

I charged the segments of the shield, letting the energy spark shield spark to life. The pieces moved apart quickly, ripping the beast mouth open and breaking its jaw. It jumped back and teleported away. When it appeared again, its jaw hung loosely from under its mouth, before twitching and snapping closed.

It began to step towards us but stopped.

I grinned when I saw the vines moving up its leg.

More vines sprouted from the ground, encompassing the beast. As it began to summon its portal, I summoned my Prisma shield and sent three tendrils of light forward. They wrapped around the head and legs of the beast and prevented any portal from forming for it to escape.

"Alpha! Up here!" I heard. I looked over and saw Luna standing on the ridge of the crater. Next to her was a firing line of Militia soldiers. An array of Hemlocks, spitfires, and even archers all aimed down at the pinned beast. Accompanying them were all of the heroes' parties.

'_Finally._' I thought. "You three, get on the ridge, now!"

They did, realizing what was about to happen. I stepped back but didn't let the tendrils drop. With a single command, I let loose one of the most powerful concentrated barrages Melromarc had seen in centuries.

"Open fire!" I yelled up to them.

What came next was truly spectacular.

A torrent of rifle fire, machine gun spray, and rockets were let loose upon the chained beast. Bullets cut through creature and flora alike. Rockets blasted away whatever armor it had, exposing its core to the devastation that rained forth.

It only took a few seconds for me to lose any sense of clear hearing. The distinct sounds blurred together into heavy ringing until it disappeared completely. The dust kicked up from the barrage surrounded everything in the crater and forced me to close my eyes.

The barrage must have carried on for almost a full minute. Not an incredibly long time, but to be subjected to that level of firepower for that long was nothing short of devastating. The only sign that it had ended was when the sharp ringing in my ears began to quiet.

When I opened my eyes, I could barely see past the cloud of dust. The constructs from my Prisma Shield had snapped at some point during the fire, but I doubt whiplash was even noticeable in that moment. I could hear the sound of struggling within the dust while red flashes appeared through the smoke.

I stumbled toward the warp beast holding my broken shield-arm.

With my good arm, I waved away the smoke to reveal the beast in a pitiful state. Its entire left side had been shredded apart. Its limbs were near non-existent and half its head was destroyed. Flowing from the breaks in its skin was a bright yellow liquid. The substance had an intense glow and seemed to resonate from the ground.

Its injuries tried to mend themselves closed but only snapped back open or turned to sludge.

'_Leviathan?_'

'Severe core damage. Regenerative and evolution abilities are trashed. If its core manages to mend itself it'll live but if fluid loss is anything to go by it'll die long before that. I estimate three minutes until its dead.'

'_Good._' I thought.

I kneeled down and grabbed the exposed core within the body. It thrashed in vain, trying to keep me from taking it. Slowly, I pulled the core, ripping away whatever tendrils remained attached to the body.

The core was strange. It was like dark red, almost black, glass and was completely smooth. Across the surface was a spider web of cracks and missing pieces oozing the strange yellow fluid.

Slowly, I applied pressure to the core. The spider web of cracks along the core grew while whatever energy inside began thrashing around, letting out a small screech.

Crack!

The core shattered into pieces, leaving fractured glass and fluid all over my hand.

'Feed those pieces to the shield.' Leviathan spoke. 'I can use the core material to grow my own power.'

'_What kind of power boost are we talking about here?_' I thought back, awkwardly feeding the core fragments into the shield. An alert appeared in my vision as I did.

'Outside core fragments detected. Do you wish to proceed?'

Before I could pick one, yes was selected.

'_Was that you?_'

'Yes. When core fragments are ingested, it takes a while for me to... work out the kinks in it.'

'_I assume by kinks, you mean it being itself?_'

'Only the largest of us possess some semblance of self. It would be more accurate to say reprogram, or something of the likes.'

'_What can I expect from it?_'

'Shield cross-compatibility. Take one shield and mix aspects of another. Since I'm one of the larger beasts, my ability to adapt my body is remarkably more limited, and so are the shields. This one can act as more of a modular piece, changing as I need it to.'

'_Shield hybrids… Anything else?_'

'Minor boost to generic stats. Strength, magic, health, the likes.'

'_All that work and only a minor boost?_'

'I've already gone to work on your body, increasing your abilities to well beyond human levels. Even though this one put up a tough fight, it's nothing more than an expendable drone. They aren't expected to live. It will be a massive boost to the other heroes, but you've already begun to grow used to my advancements. We'll need to find the core of a more powerful beast in order to boost your stats further.'

'_So, "Kill a bigger one" is what I'm hearing._'

Leviathan let out a low chuckle that startled me. 'I like the way you think.'

"Carter!" I heard behind me. I turned around to see the heroes walking up to me.

"You are actually insane." Itsuki said.

"Worked didn't it?" I asked. Ren walked up to me and handed me a health potion that I took gladly. I flinched as the bones in my arm began to pop back together. It wasn't as fast, or effective, as my potions but it worked. "Thanks."

"Now," Itsuki started, pointing at the warp beast, "mind telling us exactly what that is?"

"That…" I paused, debating if I should tell or not. Any question of it was cast aside, however. It would be stupid to try and keep information at this point. "... Is a warp beast. A drone scout to be specific. Expendable unit."

"Wait, you're telling us that one was expendable!?" Motoyasu said. I glared at him for a moment, reminded him that he was here, but returned to the conversation.

"Yep."

"And you didn't think to tell us this before!?"

"He didn't tell you two." Ren said, surprising both the other heroes. "And I'd say he had good reason to."

"You can't really be siding with him Ren?" Itsuki said. "If he knew it was going to happen, then he should've told us!"

"Well the last I told you something, you were contempt simply ignoring it and letting me be convicted." I said, anger beginning to boil in my voice. "And one of you even stabbed me in the back while they were at it."

"But Ren did too!"

"He's making an effort to earn my trust. You two haven't done shit."

Itsuki backed away looking pissed but didn't say anything.

I was gonna say more, but bit my tongue, deciding I had more important things to do. "Grab some fragments of the core. Feed it to your weapons. I'll be heading back to Riyute with my men."

"You're already going?" Ren asked.

"I gotta prep for the inbetween of this wave and the next one."

I began walking back towards the line of Militia soldiers.

As I got closer, I couldn't help but smile at the sight of my men.

Soldiers were shouting from the ridge, raising their weapons in victory. Many were laughing with joy of another successful defense. Some were even singing songs about it.

'They're certainly your men.' Leviathan said as the soldiers noticed me as I walked closer to the ridge and cheered even louder. Many of them jumped from the cliff face and slid down the slope to where I stood, headed by my own party.

'You don't say.' The men crowded around where I stood, shouting and cheering even louder.

"How'd you like the show, sir?" Alex asked as he walked through the crowd.

"It was deafening, I'll tell you that." I joked. "Where's Jax?"

"Up on the ridge with the rest of his division." As we spoke, many of the soldiers had begun to quiet down, looking at me expectantly.

Alex caught on to what was happening. "I think they're expecting you to say something, sir."

I looked between the division head and the men, thinking something up.

'Think-think, uhhh… How about… Oh-that could work.'

"Four villages... In two hours we evacuated four villages and saved God knows how many people! In two hours we helped more people than the Melromarc knights have in two months!"

Many of the soldiers began to cheer again.

"In two months, we went from a ragtag group of soldiers and turned ourselves into a real fighting force!"

More soldiers joined in the cheers.

"In only two waves, we took a bunch of farmers, miners, and blacksmiths and turned into some proper soldiers!"

"I'm proud of you. All of you. Together, we've grown into a real force against the waves. Together, we've not only defended Riyute and her people but countless others! We've done what the other heroes never so much as bothered too!" I said, making sure my voice carried to them.

"Imagine it! Imagine what we'll be when the next wave comes! Imagine how much more powerful we'll be! Make no mistake, the waves will only get stronger as time drags on. But so will we!"

And once again, the soldiers had erupted into shouts and cheers.

'Heh. It's really starting to feel just like home.'

* * *

"Those are some damn cool new things." Jax whistled. Not too long after the wave had ended, my party and I, alongside Militia forces, returned to Riyute. Though the casualties suffered by the Militia had still been quite low compared to the forces in combat, and especially the knight forces, it was still more than I cared to admit. I had gone straight to the war-tent and got to work on several new designs. Not long after, the other division heads had shown up too.

Surrounding us were some twelve panels, each with a new weapon, armor, and ordnance design.

Four new additions to the Militia arsenal that would be sure to cause some damage.

Anti-tank rifles, heavy machine guns, flamethrowers and the first Gen-2 weapon, a rail rifle. Keeping with the trend of the other weapons, AT- rifles had been named 'Kabers' and rail rifles 'Havocs'. Flamethrowers broke that trend and heald the name 'purifiers'. The design of HMG, however, left the only appropriate option for a name, the 'Browning.'

Five of thirteen some-odd panels that hovered in front of me showed the individual pieces of the new armor. Together, they created a black, bulky suit of clean cut plates over a black undersuit. Keeping the same aesthetic as the now named generation-1 Militia armor, a comically thick cloth that hung from the waist came down to the knees.

Though similar in appearance, the armor was a new far more advanced pattern. The cloth and undersuit itself were made with titanium nan-thread, making it many times stronger than even the toughest chainmail yet many times lighter too. The plates were made of a material named oxium, a super-lightweight metal that, though incredibly brittle, was on par with tungsten alloy.

"It marks the change to generation-2 armor. You think I was joking when I said all that in the crater?"

Jax smiled. "No sir. But you think we'll be able to build enough of them fast enough?"

"...No." I was disappointed. "If the predicted time of the design is accurate, a single suit of armor would take eight hours to complete. Put across all fabricators, it would take a full day to outfit a single twelve man squad. It'll take a while to outfit our forces."

"And with the new recruits, we're gonna get after this wave…" Alex said. "That's gonna take the better part of a month."

"Well not just that, but the armor is incomplete." I said.

"Incomplete?" Eran said. "What do you mean?"

"The new armor is modular. It's not meant to be the jack of all trades. It's meant to have additional pieces added depending on the specialization. Not just that, but we can't even maintain Havocs yet. Since they're railguns, they'll require some way to recharge. And without the soldiers having the same mana stores as me or even my party, that's really a whole other headache I didn't care to have yet."

"Can we do it? Outfit the Militia with the new armor?"

"I had no doubt we could and still keep other projects relatively on track, albeit delayed, but we'd be pushing past the next wave. And with all the shit that'll be going on in this time, we aren't exactly on a good track to begin with."

'Guess I'll add another set of fabricators to the list of things I need.'

'Don't we meet the queen during this time?" Leviathan asked.

'Yep.'

'And, doesn't she grant some kind of reward after we defeat the pope?'

A grin started spreading under my mask. 'And that's the start of my second plan for The Well.'

'And if it's as big a spot as the data we have says it is…'

'Then we'll have all the production capability we need. Guess that just got moved higher on my list of things to do.'

"Alright, begin production of the first batch of armors, one for each of your best squads. I'll let you figure out how many of the new weapons we'll want once we have an accurate count on who's good where."

The other leaders nodded.

"By the way," I started, "how's our guest in the infirmary?"

"Still outcold." Alex said. "Healers patched most of the injuries she took but between being Shifters chew toy and our initial healing, it took a lot out of her. They think it'll be a few days before she's awake, and a week before she's moving on her own."

"Good. Have you locked her fans in the armory?"

"Yes sir. We also strapped her to the hospital bed just to be sure."

"Alright. When she wakes up, get her some of the higher quality food we have. Make our situation with the warp beast as clear as possible. Tell her where her weapons are, about the warp beast that took her out, anything to ease the tension she'll have once she wakes up. Don't give her her weapons though. I don't want a rampaging hero going through Riyute while I'm gone if it goes south."

"Yes sir-"

"Sir! You have a-What in the…" Said a soldier as he entered the tent, no doubt taken aback by the number of designs that hovered before us.

"I'll leave the rest to ya'll." I said before turning to messenger. "You have something for me?"

"Uh-right. A squad of Melromarc knights are at the front of the village. They say the king is demanding you come to the castle."

"God dammit." I groaned. "Of course I forget about this."

With a motion of my hands, the designs were compressed back into my Prisma Shield. "You three know what to do."

I turned around to follow the messenger to the knights but Jax stopped me."

"Hey General. I hope you realize just what you're getting yourself into." Jax said.

"Relax, I know what I'm doing." I said. "Wouldn't be the first I was in over my head."

I walked out of the tent and followed the messenger to the front of the village. There, I found both my party waiting and knights standing impatiently. At the front of the group was the same mustached captain that had been a pain in my ass.

"Shield. The king demands-"

"Where were y'all after the fight?" I asked my party, ignoring the knight.

Deimos stepped forward. "All the Militia soldiers were crowded around you and you started giving a speech. Thought it'd be best to let you have a moment with your men."

"Shield. The king-"

"I appreciate the thought but atleast a heads up would've been nice. I was worried when I didn't see y'all."

"Well, you kinda started doing that thing you do when you're designing new stuff and we gave up getting your attention after that."

"What? No I didn't."

"Yeah you did."

I looked at my other party members but were all silently agreeing with Deimos.

"... Shut up." I said.

"Shield Hero!" The captain finally yelled, not liking being ignored.

"Yes?" I asked as if nothing were wrong.

"The king-"

"Demands my presence at the castle? I already know."

"Wha-how could you know this?"

"Some other guy showed about an hour before you saying the same thing."

The captain silently seethed. "But-no I was informed to give you this message! Who could it have been!?"

"Couldn't tell you." I said, letting the knight silently seethe even more. He walked away, muttering about wasting his 'damned time in this damned village with the damned shield.'

"Was there actually another messenger?" Luna asked.

"No. I just wanted to piss him off. He hates spending time here when he doesn't have to. By the way," I put my arm around her and brought her into a side hug. She returned the affection. "There we go. Thought I was missing something."

"Mhm. How do you think I felt earlier?" She said, lightly glaring at me.

"Uh… Sorry about that."

"Mhm." She said before smiling. "Come on, we should probably start making our way to the castle."

"Right. Everyone, mount up."

My party nodded, transforming and mounting their partners respectively. I hopped onto Luna and we began walking towards castletown.

"Remember, on our way back from the castle, we'll be confronted by Melty and the king's knights. Do not engage the knights, let them attack first. Phobos, Deimos, you two will attack first. I'll deal with the crystal ball. Luna, Raph, stay back and defend Melty. Odds a knight gets past us is slim to none but I'd rather gamble when I don't have to. Clear?"

"Yes sir!"

* * *

'_You know, I am not looking forward to this._' I thought it was somewhat irritated.

'I am well aware of that fact. But shouldn't you still be paying attention?'

'_I'll pay attention when I have to._'

"Shield Hero!" The king bellowed. He sat in his throne while I stood in the middle of the chambers we had first met in.

'_Dammit._'

"Can I help you?" I asked.

The King let out an angry sigh. "Please, replay the projection of the wave."

The knight next to the king nodded and held up a crystal ball. A projection of the fight appeared between me and the king.

It was of me rodeoing the Soul Eater. As the fight continued, lightning began to spark near the mouth before a ray light burst the back of the Soul Eater and I was thrown to the side, holding my Gauss Shield. When the recording finished he looked back at me.

"As much as I hate to admit it, you and your… Militia did well this wave."

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" I said, putting my hand next to my ear. "I wanna make sure I heard you right."

"Don't push it."

"Also, can I have a copy of that recording?"

The King growled. "No. Now if you'd be quiet, I must ask something of you."

'_Wait for it._' I thought.

"How did you obtain this power? It is unbecoming of the shield hero to possess such strength."

'_There it is._' I thought.

'Knowing what he's gonna ask is cheating.' Leviathan said.

"Ooh, you see I would, I really would... But you're kinda sorta a little bit of an absolute jackass."

Many of the knights and advisors in the throne room flinched at my blatant insult and denial of the King.

"Disrespectful! You were summoned here as the Shield Hero. You have a duty to tell me where this power came from!"

"You literally tried to summon all the heroes except me. I ain't gotta tell you shit."

"You will tell me how you found this strength! There is no feasible way for the Shield to simply become this powerful!"

Leviathan chuckled. 'I think he's starting to get mad.'

'_Oh, you haven't seen anything yet._'

"Alright, you wanna know, I'll tell you. But first, you have to do something for me." I said, pointing at the ground. "Kiss my boot."

"What!?"

'Huh?'

Neither him, Leviathan, or the guards could hide their surprise.

"You heard me." I said. "Climb off that throne. Get down on your knees. Kiss my boot, and say 'please oh great Shield Hero, enlighten me with your vast intellect.' And you know what? Throw in those funds I was promised while you're at it."

'I will admit. I did not see that coming.'

'_Told you._'

"You insolent whelp!" At his word, the guards had surrounded me with their swords drawn.

"You sure you want to do that?" I asked boredly. "I defeated the monster that the other three heroes were powerless against. You really wanna see how long you'll last?"

Many of the guards looked between each other, shaken by my words. I turned back to the main doors, intent on leaving this conversation.

"Let me make this clear Aultcray. I know you don't like me. I know why you don't like me. I know what the church of the three heroes plans to do, and I know what your bitch of a daughter plans to do. But you wouldn't listen to me about any of it, so instead I'll say this.

"When I fight in the waves, I do not defend you. I do not defend your kingdom. I defend the people because, unlike you, the majority of them are good people, or at least open to change to better ways. I defend them. Not you." I turned around to leave. "And I am not afraid to remind you of the difference."

"Y-You beast! You will pay for your insolence!" The King yelled.

"Yeah, I'll get right on that." I said, waving off his threat.

The King growled. "If it is not you, then it will be those must of yours-"

"Oh Aultcray, you should know by now," Slowly I turned around to meet his gaze. "I'm the last person you want to be making threats to."

I turned around fully, giving him my full attention. "Attack my party, or any of my people for that matter, and I will lay siege to this city, storm this castle, and see to it that they are made an example of, personally."

"Y-You're bluffing!" The King yelled.

I summoned my Twin Sentinel Shields and let blades spark to life. They appeared with a hiss and the guards backed away, never having seen a weapon like this. "For those I love, I will do horrible things." I said turning around. "You should understand that just as well as I do."

The guards backed away, feeling the heat running off the blades as I walked by. I let the blades clam and left the chamber, leaving the occupants in silence.

'That's one hell of a threat Carter. You sure the Militia would follow through with it?'

'_They first members were almost wiped out by Melromarc knights. No doubt the stories have circulated through the ranks. Those that followed after felt abandoned to the monsters by Melromarc. The soldiers and villagers have already grown untrusting of Melromarc, and many are even hostile. If the king attacks, they'll retaliate._' I thought back, passing by where I planted my fist in the castle wall.

'And Melty?'

'_... If there really is a fight in Riyute and she's that much against it, then I'll point her to the soldiers. Hearing what they've gone through from the king and Malty would shake her belief on the matter quite a bit. Worst case scenario she enters a deep conflict about the two sides. Best case, she joins us._'

I rounded a corner and was met with an open area of the castle near a set of ornate stairs.

'You really think she'd join her father?'

'_Not after hearing what he's done. And after the attempt at her life, especially not if her sister is still there. She'd think Riyute was the safest place._'

'The safest place for royalty would be the place that's grown to hate it. Ironic.'

'_Quite._'

I could feel leviathan begin to smile as I began to walk down the stairs in the main room. 'You're getting better at predicting based on people, and not your knowledge.'

'_Why thank you. I try._'

"Sir Shield Hero." Said a lady walking past me. Her dress was an ornate pink and she kept her hair two tails. "You have done well for yourself, I dare say."

'_I dare-? Oh._'

"Oh hey shadow. Was wondering when you'd show up." I said, lowering my voice.

"It appears you really do possess a great deal of knowledge on our world. Anyone else would have assumed me a noble's daughter."

"Well, the 'I dare say' is kind of a dead giveaway."

"I see." She said. "Tell me, do you know what's coming, I dare ask?"

"Asking for me? Or for the Queen?"

"Both, I dare say."

"The Pope has a replica of the legendary weapons. The most powerful ability it possesses is judgment. It can also change forms between each offensive weapon. I don't know if it has shield capabilities too but even if it did, he won't use it for obvious reasons."

"Worrying. Anything more?"

"He'll attempt to kill the other heroes along with me, saying they're imposters. He'd originally do so because of some of their failures but with my intervention I don't know how much they'll really play into it."

"Thank you, Shield Hero. I'll be sure to alert the queen, I dare say."

I nodded and she continued up the stairs while I approached the main doors of the castle.

'You sure you can just tell her this?'

'_The queen will be an ally to us, even if her husband isn't. That shadow serves directly under her. She can be trusted._'

Standing just outside the castle doors was my party, waiting for me.

"How'd it go?" Luna asked.

"Just as you'd expect." I said. "He made a threat, I made a promise. It was honestly just a waste of time."

"Master, you really shouldn't be making threats to the King." Raphtalia said.

"Trust me, I wouldn't be if it were just about any other person. But I need him to realize just what'll happen if he attacks ya'll or the Militia." I said. "Let's just get out of here."

My party sighed but began to mount up.

As I mounted Luna, my eyes shot back, scanning the windows of the castle. It was like a prick went off in the back of my neck.

"Alpha?" Luna asked, shaking me out of my trance. "You alright?"

"Yeah." I said, looking between her and the castle. "Come on. I don't want us to be here any longer than we have to be."

Luna nodded and my party started off for the long road ahead.

'_... You feel that?_' I thought.

'Yeah.' Leviathan said. 'I did. You know that means?'

'_Yep._' I thought back. '_I got a bad feeling about this._'

* * *

We had left the castle some time ago and the sun had begun to set. Both Riyute and Castletown were some ways away from us by now. We kept a steady pace down the road.

We hadn't said anything as we walked, preparing ourselves for what we were about to get into. What worse is that the feeling hadn't subsided, and had only gotten worse.

"... We sure there's no way around this?" Luna asked, having second thoughts. She knew what was at stake but was still unsure. I couldn't blame her.

"Trust me, I don't like this either, but I can't think of any other way. Not one that's viable anyway."

"Shield Hero!" We heard. Behind us was Melty riding in a carriage. She was leaning out of the window side and was waving us down.

"Besides, we're too far in now." I said as my party stopped and turned around to meet her. Her carriage stopped a little way back behind us. She exited the carriage and made her way over to us but the soldiers held back.

"Princess Melty," I said. "I hope you remembered what I said back in Riyute."

She stopped. "Y-Yes. I do remember..."

I sighed. "You're still gonna try and get me to make up with your father, aren't you?"

"Look, if you just try, I'm sure you-"

"Melty, he was threatening me with the lives of both my party and the Militia. No chance. And besides, now is not the time to be talking about it."

"I understand that but if we don't go now, it'll be to late." She pleaded.

I sighed irritated. Of all the times to talk about this, now had to be worse. I looked up at the knights and saw that they had prepared the crystal ball.

"You must see that-"

"They're close." I said, cutting her off.

"You mean...?" She stuttered.

"Yep." I summoned my Thorn Shield and put my hand on her shoulder and gently pulled her back. "You best get behind us."

As I said it, one of the knights began to run towards us, drawing his sword as he ran.

"Phobos." I said calmly. Phobos nodded and rushed towards the knight, pulling back his hammer.

"Huah!" He bellowed, swinging his hammer into the side of the knight. It connected with the knight's side and indented itself into the side of the knight's armor before throwing him off to the side.

Two of the other knights standing near the crystal ball draw their swords and rushed forward to strike at Phobos.

"Deimos, defend him." Deimos followed and rushed out, the blades of his hatchets sparking to life. The first knight thrust his sword forward, intent to impale the demihuman.

Deimos sidestepped the blade and struck the weapon with his hatchet, cutting the sword in half with ease. He followed up with two quick cuts to the arm and leg and a final strike to the unguarded neck. The second soldier tried to strike Deimos but Deimos caught the blade between the back ends of his axes.

The knight tried to take his sword out, but Phobos delivered a devastating punch to the side of the knight's head, knocking him out for good.

I raised my Thorn Shield and fired three spikes towards the knights standing back with the crystal ball. The thorns punched through the armor and into the torso of the first guard standing by the carriage. The soldier holding the crystal ball began to panic, knowing he was outnumbered and outmatched. He turned around and ran, hoping to get away from us.

"Filo, go knock him out." I said.

"On it." She said, rushing off. She merely skipped up behind the fleeing knight, smiling like nothing was wrong.

'It's honestly kind of cute, in a childish way.'

"Huah!" She jumped into the air and punched the knights head so hard his head went into the ground and his feet were flung into the air. He laid on the ground unmoving for a bit.

"... Did I hit him too hard?" She asked innocently.

"It's fine." I sighed. Odds were he was alive but it would be a while before he was awake, and a bit longer until he could form coherent sentences. "Look around his neck for a necklace. Grab that and the crystal ball and we can start heading East."

"Got it!"

I turned back to Luna and Raphtalia. "Alright, I need you two to-"

"Uh, Master." Filo said. "What are those?"

"What are-" I turned around to ask but saw it.

Streaking across the sky were eight orange they traveled through the sky, they began to arc towards the ground, right of the direction…

'_Riyute._'

The lights impacted and a burst of orange came from the ground. The shockwaves followed, the sound of the explosions reaching all the way over here.

"That bastard!" I yelled. "Forget the plan! Mount up, now!"

"Why!? What's happening!?" Melty asked frightened.

"Your old man just attacked Riyute."


End file.
